Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

Centaurus A: The Galaxy Deep Inside

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for December 4, 1998 is “Centaurus A: The Galaxy Deep Inside,” an image. It is credited to Credit: ESA/ISO, ISOCAM Team, I. F. Mirabel and O. Laurent (CEA/DSM/DAPNIA), et al.. The original explanation runs about 150 words.

Centaurus A: The Galaxy Deep Inside
Credit: ESA/ISO, ISOCAM Team, I. F. Mirabel and O. Laurent (CEA/DSM/DAPNIA), et al. Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“Deep inside Centaurus A , the closest active galaxy to Earth, lies … another galaxy! Cen A is a giant elliptical galaxy a mere 10 million light-years distant with a central jumble of stars, dust, and gas that probably hides a massive black hole .”

— APOD editors, December 4, 1998

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
December 4, 1998
Type
Image
Credit
Credit: ESA/ISO, ISOCAM Team, I. F. Mirabel and O. Laurent (CEA/DSM/DAPNIA), et al.
Copyright
No copyright notice on the entry. Check the credited institution’s own usage rules before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 150 words

All of December 1998 → · 1998 by month → · Full archive since 1995 →

Topics in this entry

GalaxiesBlack holes

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: December 4 in other years

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Source

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.