Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

NGC 4651: The Umbrella Galaxy

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for February 7, 2022 is “NGC 4651: The Umbrella Galaxy,” an image. The picture is copyrighted by its creator (Image Credit & Copyright: CFHT , Coelum , MegaCam , J.-C. Cuillandre ( CFHT ) & G. A. Anselmi ( Coelum )). The original explanation runs about 142 words.

The featured image shows a galactic merger together called the Umbrella Galaxy because the remnants of one galaxy have been left looking like an umbrella hovering over the other galaxy. Please see the explanation for more detailed informati
Credit: Image Credit & Copyright: CFHT , Coelum , MegaCam , J.-C. Cuillandre ( CFHT ) & G. A. Anselmi ( Coelum ) Copyrighted Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“It’s raining stars. What appears to be a giant cosmic umbrella is now known to be a tidal stream of stars stripped from a small satellite galaxy .”

— APOD editors, February 7, 2022

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
February 7, 2022
Type
Image
Credit
Credit: Image Credit & Copyright: CFHT , Coelum , MegaCam , J.-C. Cuillandre ( CFHT ) & G. A. Anselmi ( Coelum )
Copyright
Copyrighted by the credited creator. Ask the copyright holder before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 142 words

All of February 2022 → · 2022 by month → · Full archive since 1995 →

Topics in this entry

Galaxies

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: February 7 in other years

On Amazon

Popular picks for space fans

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Electronics Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition 32GB Read astronomy and space-history books anywhere. View on Amazon → Electronics Bose QuietComfort Wireless Headphones Noise-cancelling headphones for documentaries and launch livestreams. View on Amazon →

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.