Cigar Galaxy
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The Cigar Galaxy is a starburst galaxy about 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. It owes its name to its elongated, cigar-like shape. M82 is undergoing intense star formation, probably triggered by gravitational interaction with its nearby neighbour, the spiral galaxy M81. The strong stellar activity results in winds and bipolar outflows.
Additional information
This image is a composite of images taken with the B, V, R broadband filters, the clear filter and the Halpha filter. There were 20 exposures of 300s each in the B, V, and R bands, 115 exposures of 150s each in the clear filter and 20 exposures of 900s each in the Halpha filter, giving a total exposure time of about 11.5 hours.