Photo Agency - Astronomy - Space - Nature

> XMM-Newton X view of the Andromeda galaxy

XMM-Newton X view of the Andromeda galaxy

author: ESA/XMM-Newton/EPIC/Novapix

reference: a-gax02-24076

Image Size 300 DPI: 12 * 17 cm

This image of the Andromeda Galaxy was taken by XMM-Newton during Christmas 2010. It shows hundreds of X-ray sources within Andromeda, many of them clustered around the centre, where the stars are densest. Each one is a dying star system. The sources can be shockwaves and debris rolling through space from exploded stars or pairs of stars locked in a gravitational fight to the death, in which one strips the other of precious gas.

Keywords for this photo:

2010 - ANDROMEDA - ASTRONOMY - GALAXY - LOCAL GROUP - M31 - NGC 224 - Sb - SPIRAL GALAXY - STAR - X - X-RAY - XMM - XMM-NEWTON -