images

Barred spiral galaxy NGC 2442 in Volans

by

Nasa/Esa/ESO/Novapix

Reference

a-gax24-42005

Date

2011-05-04

NGC 2442 is a barred spiral galaxy about 50 million light years away in the constellation Volans. This close-up Hubble view of the Meathook Galaxy (NGC 2442) focuses on the more compact of its two asymmetric spiral arms as well as the central regions. The spiral arm was the location of a supernova that exploded in 1999. These observations were made in 2006 in order to study the aftermath of this supernova. Ground-based data from MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope were used to fill out parts of the edges of this image.