Title:[0040] A galaxy of the local group, NGC 6822 Caption:NGC 6822 is close enough to be resolved into individual stars, although because of its distance (about 1.8 million light years) only the brightest are seen even with a telescope as powerful as the AAT. It seems to be without symmetry and is classified as an irregular galaxy. At one end of a prominent bar a few clouds of glowing gas can be seen; at the other, bright bluish stars straggle out into what appears to be the first signs of a spiral arm. NGC 6822 is one of the nearest galaxies to us and is a member of a small cluster known as the Local Group to which our Milky Way belongs. Copyright:(c) 1982 Anglo-Australian Telescope Board, photograph by David Malin Credit:D. F. Malin

Title:[0009] A spiral galaxy seen almost edge-on, NGC 253 Caption:NGC 253 is one of the nearest spiral galaxies. It is the most massive member of a group of galaxies lying in the southern constellation Sculptor and is 10 million light years away. It contains a large amount of obscuring dust and is a strong source of infrared radiation. The upper edge of the galaxy as seen in this image is the nearer to us, and the dust clouds at this edge are clearly silhouetted against the stars behind them Copyright:(c) 1980 Anglo-Australian Telescope Board, photograph by David Malin Credit:D. F. Malin