Hubble Space Telescope Looks at NGC 5042

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have produced a beautiful new image of the intermediate spiral galaxy NGC 5042.

NGC 5042 is located around 48 million light-years away from Earth in the constellation of Hydra.

Otherwise known as ESO 508-31, LEDA 46126 or IRAS 13127-2343, the galaxy has a diameter of 80,000 light-years.

NGC 5042 was discovered by the British astronomer John Herschel on March 25, 1836.

“NGC 5042 nicely fills the frame of this Hubble image, with a single Milky Way star marked by cross-shaped diffraction spikes attempting to blend in with the bright stars along the galaxy’s edge,” the Hubble astronomers said in a statement.

The center of NGC 5042 is packed with ancient stars, and the galaxy’s spiral arms are decorated with patches of young blue stars.

“The elongated yellow-orange objects that are scattered around the image are background galaxies far more distant than NGC 5042,” the astronomers said.

“Perhaps NGC 5042’s most striking feature is its collection of brilliant pink gas clouds that are studded throughout its spiral arms.”

“These flashy clouds are called H II regions, and they get their distinctive color from hydrogen atoms that have been ionized by ultraviolet light.”

“If you look closely at this image, you’ll see that many of these reddish clouds are associated with clumps of blue stars, often appearing to form a shell around the stars.”

“H II regions arise in expansive clouds of hydrogen gas, and only hot and massive stars produce enough high-energy light to create an H II region.”

“Because the stars capable of creating H II regions only live for a few million years — just a blink of an eye in galactic terms — this image represents a fleeting snapshot of life in this galaxy.”

The new image of NGC 5042 is made up of observations from Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) in the ultraviolet, near-infrared, and optical parts of the spectrum.

Six filters were used to sample various wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter.

“Hubble observed NGC 5042 in six wavelength bands from the ultraviolet to the infrared to create this multicoloured portrait,” the researchers said.