ESO Reveals New Photo of a Grand Design Spiral Galaxy Snapped by the Very Large Telescope

The European Southern Observatory (ESO) has released a new photo snapped by the Very Large Telescope. The photo features the NGC 4254, which is otherwise known as Messier 99.

Specifically, the Very Large Telescope's Multi-Unite Spectroscopic Explorer was used to capture the image in great detail.

The galaxy is an example of a grand design spiral galaxy, which are notable for their well-defined arms that surround the center. Spiral galaxies are one of the three classifications of galaxies based on shape that scientists have come up with. The other two are elliptical and irregular.

ESO Reveals New Photo of Messier 99

ESO has shared a new photo of the NGC 4254, which is also known as Messier 99, with the public. The photo was taken by the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) on the Very Large Telescope.

According to the ESO, Messier 99 is "an example of a grand design spiral galaxy, featuring strong, prominent, well-defined arms that wrap clearly around the galaxy's centre."

The photo was taken as part of a program known as Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby Galaxies (PHANGS).

"The image shows clouds of gas ionized by newly born stars, where hydrogen is represented in red, oxygen is represented in blue and sulfur is represented in orange," Space said in its report on the new image.

NGC 4254 or Messier 99

NGC 4254 or the Messier 99 is 49 million light-years away from our planet. It resides in the constellation known as Coma Berenices. It is one of the space objects cataloged by astronomer Charles Messier, which is why it is also known as Messier 99.

According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the grand design spiral galaxy was discovered in 1781 by a French astronomer named Pierre Méchain.

The spiral galaxy is said to be easiest to view in May. Those who want to see it can do so using a moderately sized telescope.

Very Large Telescope

The telescope used to snapp the Messier 99's latest photo, the Very Large Telescope is regarded as Europe's flagship facility when it comes to ground-based astronomical observations, according to the ESO. It is also considered as one of the world's best and most advanced optical telescopes.

The Very Large Telescope has four unit telescopes that can both work together or function individually. These telescopes have also been named by scientists: Antu, Kueyen, Melipal, and Yepun.

The Very Large Telescope is located in Chile.

The specific instrument used to capture the image, MUSE, "combines a wide field of view with a fine spatial sampling and a large simultaneous spectral range," according to the report by Space.

MUSE, which is classified as an integral field spectrograph (IFS), makes it possible for scientists to measure light intensity as a function of its color.