Back to Glossary

Centaurus

Centaurus is a prominent constellation in the southern sky, representing a centaur from Greek mythology. It contains notable celestial objects, including Alpha Centauri, the closest star system to the Sun, and Omega Centauri, the largest globular cluster in the Milky Way.

Source: noirlab.edu

APODs including "Centaurus"

Jets from Unusual Galaxy Centaurus A

31/05/2011

Jets from Unusual Galaxy Centaurus A
Image Credit: NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day

Jets of streaming plasma expelled by the central black hole of a massive spiral galaxy light up this composite image of Centaurus A. The jets emanating from Cen A are over a million light years long. Exactly how the central black hole expels infalling matter is still unknown. After clearing the galaxy, however, the jets inflate large radio bubbles that likely glow for millions of years. If excited by a passing front, radio bubbles can even light up again after a billion years. X-ray light is depicted in the above composite image in blue, while microwave light is false-colored orange. The inset image in radio light shows newly imaged, never seen-before details of the innermost light year of the central jet.