Check out Hubble’s latest find: the stunning IC 3225 galaxy

The Hubble Space Telescope, a joint mission between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA), has captured an image of the spiral galaxy IC 3225, which appears as if it was launched like a ‘celestial cannonball’. Positioned in the Virgo cluster of galaxies, about 100 million light-years from Earth, IC 3225 exhibits a distinctive structure, with a dense arm filled with young, hot blue stars and an elongated tail of gas stretching behind it. The galaxy’s dramatic appearance provides clues to its rapid journey through the densely populated Virgo cluster.

The power of ram pressure

The shape of IC 3225 can be attributed to a process called ‘ram pressure stripping’. The galaxy is moving through an area filled with hot gas. It is known as the intracluster medium which exerts enormous pressure on any galaxy that passes through it. This drag removes gas from galaxies, preventing or slowing star formation. However, it can also increase star formation on one side by compressing gas, as seen in the lower left of IC 3225, where new stars are visibly forming in bright blue clusters. Scientists theorize that IC 3225 has undergone this process in the past, leading to its compressed, distorted shape.

Impact of the cluster environment

The densely populated Virgo cluster, home to more than 1,300 galaxies, places its members under constant gravitational interactions and pressure. This environment influences the shape and behavior of galaxies like IC 3225. As it moves, its interactions with other galaxies and the intense gravitational forces within the cluster stretch and pull, increasing its irregular shape. Astronomers speculate that IC 3225’s shape could also result from close interactions with other galaxies in the cluster, amplifying the effects of ram pressure stripping.

The image of IC 3225 provides new insight into the dynamical forces that shape galaxies and illustrates the turbulent environments that galaxies can change over time.