The Pinwheel Galaxy, also known as M101, is a spiral galaxy that measures 170,000 lightyears across and is located 25 million lightyears away from Earth in the Ursa Major constellation.
The galaxy is about twice the diameter of our own galaxy the Milky Way and is thought to contain about 1 trillion stars.
Hubble’s image of the Pinwheel Galaxy, M101, was captured over 10 years. Credit: NASA, ESA, K. Kuntz (JHU), F. Bresolin (University of Hawaii), J. Trauger (Jet Propulsion Lab), J. Mould (NOAO), Y.-H. Chu (University of Illinois, Urbana) and STScI.
Images of the Pinwheel Galaxy show a predominance of scorching hot young stars glowing bright blue within the arms of the spiral galaxy.
These regions are subject to intense bursts of star formation among the cosmic dust and gas, within molecular hydrogen clouds.
The Pinwheel Galaxy was discovered by Perre Méchain, a colleague of Charles Messier, in 1781, and Messier eventually included it in his famous Messier Catalogue of deep-sky objects.
How to see the Pinwheel Galaxy
Chart showing the Plough asterism in Ursa Major and the location of the Pinwheel Galaxy, M101, above star Alkaid. Credit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine
If you would like to observe the Pinwheel Galaxy or photograph it, it is best seen in the northern hemisphere in April and can be observed through a small telescope.
You can find it quite easily by locating the Plough or Big Dipper asterism in the constellation Ursa Major.
Imagine the Plough as a saucepan, and locate star Alkaid at the very end of the saucepan's handle. Above it you'll find the Pinwheel Galaxy.
Pinwheel Galaxy supernova
Supernova M101 in 'before and after' images captured by Paul Jacklin, 16 May and 20 may.
The Pinwheel Galaxy has become famous more recently due to the discovery of a supernova within one of its spiral arms.
The closest supernova to Earth in five years, designated SN 2023ixf, was discovered in one of its spiral arms on 19 May 2023 by amateur astronomer Koichi Itagaki.
It was subsequently observed and imaged by many an enthusiastic observer and astrophotographer, generating quite a buzz online and on social media.
The Pinwheel Galaxy, Rouzbeh Bidishahri, Vancouver, Canada, 10 June 2021. Equipment: QHY268M camera, Planewave CDK12.5 astrograph, Astro-Physics 1100 GTO mount
Images
Below is a selection of some of the best pictures of the Pinwheel Galaxy captured by BBC Sky at Night Magazine readers and astrophotographers around the world.
And don't forget to send us your images or share them with us via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
M101 The Pinwheel spiral galaxy with bright Supernova SN 2023ixf, captured by John Chumack, Dayton, Ohio, USA, 22 May 2023. Equipment: ZWO 294MC cooled CMOS Camera, Vixen 5.5 inch F5 Newtonian, Baader Coma Corrector, Celestron AVX Mount.
The Pinwheel Galaxy, by Gary Opitz, Rochester, NY, USA, 02, 03, 04, 08 June 2022. Equipment: TEC 140 APO refractor at f/7, ZWO ASI2600MM-Pro mono camera
The Pinwheel Galaxy
Lee Hore, north Cornwall, 23–24 March 2022
Equipment: ZWO ASI294MC camera, Sky-Watcher EvoStar 72ED refractor, Sky-Watcher AZ-GTi mount
The Pinwheel Galaxy
Paul Humberstone, Llandudno, 22 and 23 March 2022
Equipment: ZWO ASI294MC Pro camera, Celestron 8-inch EdgeHD Schmidt-Cassegrain, Sky-Watcher ER6-R Pro mount
The Southern Pinwheel Galaxy
Jason Matter, Okeechobee, Florida, USA, 28 February–6 March 2022
Equipment: ZWO ASI2600MM Pro camera, Stellarvue SVA130T refractor, Astro-Physics 1200GTO mount
The Pinwheel Galaxy
Hannah and Joel Da Costa, Preston, 6 and 7 April 2021
Equipment: ZWO ASI294MC Pro camera, Celestron NexStar Evolution 6 Schmidt-Cassegrain
The Pinwheel Galaxy, Rouzbeh Bidishahri, Vancouver, Canada, 10 June 2021. Equipment: QHY268M camera, Planewave CDK12.5 astrograph, Astro-Physics 1100 GTO mount
Pinwheel Galaxy James Harrison, Witney, Oxfordshire, March 2020 Equipment: ZWO ASI 183MM Pro mono camera, Sky-Watcher Explorer 200P Newtonian reflector, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro mount
Hubble’s stunning image of the gigantic Pinwheel Galaxy, M101, was captured over 10 years. It shows the detail of the galaxy’s spiral arms, which are sprinkled with large regions of star-forming nebulae.
Credits: Hubble Image: NASA, ESA, K. Kuntz (JHU), F. Bresolin (University of Hawaii), J. Trauger (Jet Propulsion Lab), J. Mould (NOAO), Y.-H. Chu (University of Illinois, Urbana) and STScI; CFHT Image: Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope/J.-C. Cuillandre/Coelum; NOAO Image: G. Jacoby, B. Bohannan, M. Hanna/NOAO/AURA/NSF
Pinwheel Galaxy, Mark Griffith, Wiltshire, 20 January 2017. Equipment: Atik 383L CCD camera, Teleskop Service 12-inch Ritchey-Chrétien telescope, Sky-Watcher EQ8 Pro equatorial mount.
This image of the Pinwheel Galaxy, or M101, combines data in the infrared, visible, ultraviolet and x-rays from four of NASA’s space telescopes. This multi-spectral view shows that both young and old stars are evenly distributed along M101’s tightly-wound spiral arms. Such composite images allow astronomers to see how features in one part of the spectrum match up with those seen in other parts. It is like seeing with a regular camera, an ultraviolet camera, night-vision goggles and X-Ray vision, all at once!
The Pinwheel Galaxy is in the constellation of Ursa Major (also known as the Big Dipper). It is about 70% larger than our own Milky Way Galaxy, with a diameter of about 170,000 light years, and sits at a distance of 21 million light years from Earth.
The red colors in the image show infrared light, as seen by the Spitzer Space Telescope. These areas show the heat emitted by dusty lanes in the galaxy, where stars are forming. The yellow component is visible light, observed by the Hubble Space Telescope. Most of this light comes from stars, and they trace the same spiral structure as the dust lanes seen in the infrared. The blue areas are ultraviolet light, given out by hot, young stars that formed about 1 million years ago. The Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) captured this component of the image. Finally, the hottest areas are shown in purple, where the Chandra X-ray observatory observed the X-ray emission from exploded stars, million-degree gas, and material colliding around black holes.
Credit: NASA/JPL
M101 - The Pinwheel Galaxy by Keith Bramley, Pilling, Lancashire, UK. Equipment: Atik 383L Mono, 190MN, EQ6, Baader LRGB Filters
Pinwheel by James Robertson, Lake District, UK. Equipment: Celestron Edge 8HD f7/1400, Canon 1100d, iso 1600
Pinwheel Galaxy James Harrison, Witney, Oxfordshire, March 2020 Equipment: ZWO ASI 183MM Pro mono camera, Sky-Watcher Explorer 200P Newtonian reflector, Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro mount
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