Fact Sheet
Hanny's Voorwerp
What looks like a green intergalactic monster below the spiral galaxy in this picture is really a big cloud of gas and dust lit up by a jet of energy from a supermassive black hole. A Dutch teacher discovered the object while reviewing photograps as part of an international galaxy-classification project. It was named Hanny's Voorwerp ("object") in her honor, and spurred professional astronomers to research its true nature. [Dan Smith (Liverpool John Moores)/Peter Herbert (Univ. Hertfordshire)]
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