Dust in a Galaxy (IMAGE)

Sloan Digital Sky Survey

Dust in a Galaxy

Caption

Spiral galaxies seen edge-on often show dark lanes of interstellar dust blocking light from the galaxy's stars, as in this image of the galaxy NGC 4565 from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. The dust is formed in the outer regions of dying stars, and it drifts off to mix with interstellar gas. The new analysis of quasar colors shows that galaxies also expel dust to distances of several hundred thousand light years, ten times farther than the visible edge of the galaxy seen in this image. The thin haze of intergalactic dust dims and reddens the light from background quasars.

Credit

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey

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