Astronomy Picture of the Day · June 2, 2012

M51: The Whirlpool Galaxy

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for June 2, 2012 is “M51: The Whirlpool Galaxy,” an image. The picture is copyrighted by its creator (Image Credit & Copyright: Marco Burali, Tiziano Capecchi, Marco Mancini ( Osservatorio MTM )). The original explanation runs about 135 words.

From the explanation

“Follow the handle of the Big Dipper away from the dipper’s bowl until you get to the handle’s last bright star. Then, just slide your telescope a little south and west and you might find this stunning pair of interacting galaxies, the 51st entry in Charles Messier famous catalog.”

— APOD editors, June 2, 2012

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date: June 2, 2012
Type: Image
Credit: Credit: Image Credit & Copyright: Marco Burali, Tiziano Capecchi, Marco Mancini ( Osservatorio MTM )
Copyright: Copyrighted by the credited creator. Ask the copyright holder before reusing it.
Explanation length: About 135 words

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Topics in this entry

Galaxies

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: June 2 in other years

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Source

Astronomy Picture of the Day, June 2, 2012 — science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2012-june-2-m51-the-whirlpool-galaxy

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.