Fact Sheet
Spectacular Spiral
M51, the Whirlpool Galaxy, is one of the most beautiful objects in the sky. It's about 30 million light-years away, in the constellation Canes Venatici. Bright young stars outline its spiral arms, while red blobs are "nurseries" where new stars are being born. The Whirlpool is similar to our own Milky Way galaxy, though not as large. A smaller galaxy, at right, has sideswiped the Whirlpool, pulling out great streamers of stars from both galaxies. [NASA/ESA/S.Beckwith/Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)]
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