The Whirlpool Galaxy

 

 

 

Facts

The galaxy is about the same size as the Milky Way, 100,000 light-years across
Distance is about 26 million light-years

Discovered in 1773 by Charles Messier its first detection of the spiral shape  was by William Parsons in 1845. Its companion M51b has already danced thru each other once during a cosmic merger and both the Whirlpool and its smaller galaxy have been severely distorted by the merge.

The whirlpool galaxy is a stellar nursery due to its ongoing companion with its smaller counterpart and at the center sits a massive black hole
The Whirlpool’s companion, called M51b, is a dwarf galaxy. Because it is being torn apart by the ongoing interaction, it cannot be easily classified. Its current appearance makes it look like an irregular galaxy.
The Whirlpool galaxy is moving across the universe at 186 miles per second or about the distance from San Diego to Yuma Arizona every second. Covers the West coast to the East coast every 17 minutes.