Lonely Lenticular (2015)

This galaxy was imaged as part of the Coma Cluster survey before the ACS suffered an electrical problem and failed in the middle of this work, leaving the survey only 28% complete. This galaxy is not in the midst of the cluster but rather on the outskirts.

Identified as PGC (principle galaxy catalog) 83677, the symmetrical shape is neither spiral nor elliptical, but rather something in between. Little if any star formation is occurring and perhaps one day this lenticular galaxy will lose its disc shape, rings, and bar to become a smooth, spherical elliptical. It seems very serene to me with its old stars glowing calmly and its lack of close neighbors.

However, not all is quiet. Within the galactic nucleus, an active black hole is likely present, evidenced by its brightness in x-ray and ultraviolet wavelengths.

The saturation of the colors in this image has been increased to make the oranges and cyans more apparent.

This image is possible thanks to the following HST proposal:
An ACS Treasury Survey of the Coma cluster of galaxies

Red: HST_10861_78_ACS_WFC_F814W_sci
Green: Pseudo
Blue: HST_10861_78_ACS_WFC_F475W_sci

North is NOT up. It is 45.1° clockwise from up.

Copyright information:
Hubble data is public domain, but I put a lot of work into combining it into beautiful color images. The minimal credit line should read: NASA / ESA / J. Schmidt

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.