NASA captures an incredible photo of a creeper galaxy
Most galaxies are traveling away from our galaxy, not closer to it. Still, there are exceptions.
Take Messier 90, one of the few galaxies that appears to be traveling towards our own Milky Way galaxy. Recently, NASA's Hubble telescope caught an awe-inspiring photo of the galaxy.
Here it is in full.
Because the universe is expanding, most galaxies are moving away from the Milky Way galaxy. Consequently, these galaxies appear to be on the red side of the spectrum, a phenomenon known as redshift.
Messier 90, however, compresses the frequency of its light as it moves closer to us. That makes it fall closer to the blue side of the spectrum, a phenomenon known as blueshift.
It's important to note that the Virgo cluster, of which Messier 90 is a part, is moving away from us. But Messier 90 is actually moving faster than other galaxies in the cluster, making it appear as if it's racing towards the Milky Way. The cluster's colossal mass accelerates some of these galaxies to very high velocities.
Just look at how pretty it makes them.
I would totally take a selfie with this galaxy.
Heather was the Web Trends reporter at Mashable NYC. Prior to joining Mashable, Heather wrote regularly for UPROXX and GOOD Magazine, was published in The Daily Dot and VICE, and had her work featured in Entertainment Weekly, Jezebel, Mic, and Gawker. She loves small terrible dogs and responsible driving. Follow her on Twitter @wear_a_helmet.
