What are the three types of galaxies?
Learn about the three general types of galaxies: spiral, elliptical, and irregular.
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Transcript
Galaxies are categorized according to their apparent shape. These shapes are typically divided into elliptical, spiral, or irregular.
The shape of a galaxy gives a clue to the age and types of star within the galaxy. Spiral galaxies have a central bulge of stars surrounded by a disk that contains arms, which form a spiral structure. Stars in the bulge of a spiral galaxy tend to be older and redder than the rest. There's also a much fainter, roughly spherical, stellar halo encompassing the disk. An example of a spiral galaxy is one of our nearest neighbors, the Andromeda galaxy.
Barred spiral galaxies are spiral galaxies with a bar of stars across the middle of the galaxy. The Milky Way is thought to be a barred spiral galaxy, as are about 2/3 of all observed spiral galaxies. Spiral and barred spiral galaxies are subclassified by how tightly wound the spiral arms appear.
Elliptical galaxies don't show any structure, but have a smooth ellipsoidal shape, appearing as a large spherical or elliptical ball of stars. Elliptical galaxies can be classified in terms of how long and thin they appear.
Elliptical galaxies don't actively create new stars, but usually contain very old stars and little gas and dust. The stars in an elliptical galaxy are often close together, making the center seem like one giant star. If the Earth were inside an elliptical galaxy, the amount of light coming from the surrounding stars would mean that it would be bright all the time, no day and night.
Irregular galaxies are those with no defined shape. Many irregular galaxies probably used to be spiral or elliptical until they were disrupted by the pull of neighboring galaxies.
The shape of a galaxy gives a clue to the age and types of star within the galaxy. Spiral galaxies have a central bulge of stars surrounded by a disk that contains arms, which form a spiral structure. Stars in the bulge of a spiral galaxy tend to be older and redder than the rest. There's also a much fainter, roughly spherical, stellar halo encompassing the disk. An example of a spiral galaxy is one of our nearest neighbors, the Andromeda galaxy.
Barred spiral galaxies are spiral galaxies with a bar of stars across the middle of the galaxy. The Milky Way is thought to be a barred spiral galaxy, as are about 2/3 of all observed spiral galaxies. Spiral and barred spiral galaxies are subclassified by how tightly wound the spiral arms appear.
Elliptical galaxies don't show any structure, but have a smooth ellipsoidal shape, appearing as a large spherical or elliptical ball of stars. Elliptical galaxies can be classified in terms of how long and thin they appear.
Elliptical galaxies don't actively create new stars, but usually contain very old stars and little gas and dust. The stars in an elliptical galaxy are often close together, making the center seem like one giant star. If the Earth were inside an elliptical galaxy, the amount of light coming from the surrounding stars would mean that it would be bright all the time, no day and night.
Irregular galaxies are those with no defined shape. Many irregular galaxies probably used to be spiral or elliptical until they were disrupted by the pull of neighboring galaxies.
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