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> The radio galaxy Centaurus A (NGC 5128)
The radio galaxy Centaurus A (NGC 5128)
author: R.Jay GaBany/Novapix
reference: a-gax51-28015
Image Size 300 DPI: 13 * 10 cm
NGC 5128 is the nearest large elliptical galaxies to our sun at about 13 millions light years. It is also the nearest of the giant radio galaxies, possessing an active galactic nucleus (AGN) and optically one of the most luminous galaxies in the sky. As a radio galaxy, NGC 5128 belongs to the subgroup of galaxies called Active Galaxies, which include Quasars, Seyfert galaxies, Blazars and and Radio Galaxies. Active galaxies are distinguished by their prodigious energy output which cannot be explained by their stellar populations and must have another source. Active galaxies have in common an "Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN)" which is believed responsible for their prodigious energy output. Supermassive black holes are almost certainly the central engines of Active Galactic Nuclei, powering the enormous outflows of energy which characterize this subgroup of bright galaxies.
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