Hubble Space Telescope Views NGC 5253 with ACS / HRC

[AVAO]

Hubble Space Telescope Views NGC 5253 with ACS / HRC
NASA/ESA | Original release 2024 June 28

This Hubble image shows NGC 5253, a blue compact dwarf galaxy some 11 million light-years away in the constellation of Centaurus. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / A. Zezas / D. Calzetti.

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This image depicts the blue compact dwarf galaxy NGC 5253, as seen by the High Resolution Channel (HRC) of Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS).
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The bright centre of a galaxy. It is filled with stars, most of which are bright blue points. There are some star clusters which appear as larger shining dots surrounded closely by more stars. Clouds of gas and dust can be seen behind the galaxy core, where they are lit up and appear pink in colour, and in front of it, where they block out some of its light and appear dark in colour.
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The first new image of NGC 5253 is made up of observations from with Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), using its Wide Field Channel, and Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2).

The second image is made using data from the High Resolution Channel (HRC) of the ACS instrument.
[...]

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GOTD4Y Jac

[AVAO]

Hubble Space Telescope Views NGC 5253 with ACS / HRC
NASA/ESA | Original release 2024 June 28

This Hubble image shows NGC 5253, a blue compact dwarf galaxy some 11 million light-years away in the constellation of Centaurus. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / A. Zezas / D. Calzetti.

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GOTD4Y Jac

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

Click to view full size image

original data: NASA / ESA jac berne (flickr)

[Ann]

Hubble Space Telescope Views NGC 5253 with ACS / HRC
NASA/ESA | Original release 2024 June 28

This Hubble image shows NGC 5253, a blue compact dwarf galaxy some 11 million light-years away in the constellation of Centaurus. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / A. Zezas / D. Calzetti.

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GOTD4Y Jac

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

Click to view full size image

original data: NASA / ESA jac berne (flickr)

Thanks, Jac, I love NGC 5253!

First, a comparison:

NGC 5253. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, A. Zezas, D. Calzetti

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Magnetic field lines in M82. Credit: NASA/SOFIA/E. Lopez-Rodiguez; NASA/Spitzer/J. Moustakas et al.

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NGC 5253 is similar to M82 in that it has a disk without star formation and a tremendous starburst in its core. Of course, NGC 5253 is considerably smaller than M82, which, however, is not that big in itself.

We can easily see the dust lane feeding gas into the center of NGC 5253, fueling the starburst:

Dust lane feeding gas into the center of NGC 5252, fueling the starburst.
Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, A. Zezas, W. D. Vacca, D. Calzetti

Apparently the super star clusters of NGC 5253 are hidden behind thick clouds of gas and dust:

Position of the largest (but hidden) super star clusters of NGC 5253, #5 and #11. Credit: HST ACS/HRC, HST/STIS and VLT/UVES, Calzetti et al. 2015, Meurer et al. 1995

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There is of course another galaxy which resembles NGC 5253, namely NGC 1569. But NGC 1569 appears to be completely engulfed in red Hα nebulas:

The three visible super star clusters of NGC 1569, two of which are overlapping. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, Aloisi, Ford. Acknowledgement: Judy Schmidt (Geckzilla)

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NGC 1569 with two (actually three) super star clusters. Two of the clusters are overlapping from our point of view. A large nebula dominates the image, but there is probably more galaxy here than meets the eye. Credit: NASA / A. Aloisi (STScI/ESA) et al.

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Ann