Active Galaxies

Cygnus A is one of the brightest radio sources in the sky. However, the galaxy itself is merely a tiny dot between two huge radio-emitting clouds that it has blasted out into space.

The image on the left is the active galaxy Cygnus A in optical light. The image on the right is Cyg A in the radio band. One of the strongest radio sources in the sky, the galaxy itself is the tiny dot between the two huge lobes which have been blasted out into space.