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                           Astronomy Picture of the Day   
      
       Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our   
         fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation   
                       written by a professional astronomer.   
      
                                  2024 January 1   
       A spiral galaxy with big blue spiral arms is shown with a center that   
         appears more yellow. Please see the explanation for more detailed   
                                   information.   
      
                      NGC 1232: A Grand Design Spiral Galaxy   
                    Image Credit: FORS, 8.2-meter VLT Antu, ESO   
      
      Explanation: Galaxies are fascinating not only for what is visible, but   
      for what is invisible. Grand spiral galaxy NGC 1232, captured in detail   
      by one of the Very Large Telescopes, is a good example. The visible is   
      dominated by millions of bright stars and dark dust, caught up in a   
      gravitational swirl of spiral arms revolving about the center. Open   
      clusters containing bright blue stars can be seen sprinkled along these   
      spiral arms, while dark lanes of dense interstellar dust can be seen   
      sprinkled between them. Less visible, but detectable, are billions of   
      dim normal stars and vast tracts of interstellar gas, together wielding   
      such high mass that they dominate the dynamics of the inner galaxy.   
      Leading theories indicate that even greater amounts of matter are   
      invisible, in a form we don't yet know. This pervasive dark matter is   
      postulated, in part, to explain the motions of the visible matter in   
      the outer regions of galaxies.   
      
         Free APOD Lecture: January 9, 2024 to the Amateur Astronomers of   
                              Association of New York   
                          Tomorrow's picture: open space   
        __________________________________________________________________   
      
          Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)   
               NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.   
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                         A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,   
                              NASA Science Activation   
                                & Michigan Tech. U.   
      
   --- BBBS/Li6 v4.10 Toy-6   
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