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Lurking within the Perseus constellation in the northern sky is one of the most massive objects in the universe.
Welcome to the Perseus Galaxy Cluster, a collection of thousands of galaxies enveloped by an enormous cloud of superheated gas.
NASA
(This image shows just one of those galaxies.)
At 240 million lightyears away, the Perseus Cluster is actually one of the closest clusters to us.
Newly released images of individual galaxies within the cluster reveal the weird effects of a crowded cluster.
This image of NGC 1265 shows radio jets forming a “tail” as the galaxy moves through the thin material between other galaxies.
Similarly to NGC 1265, the galaxy IC 130’s jets are also bent backwards as it moves through space.
M. Gendron-Marsolais et al.; S. Dagnello, NRAO/AUI/NSF; SDSS.
New details of NGC 1275 show weird filament structures in the galaxy’s lobes.
Galaxy clusters are still pretty mysterious to us, so images like these can help scientists understand their complicated dynamics.
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