The Great Galaxy in Andromeda

The fuzzy star in the middle of this 35 second exposure is actually a spiral galaxy composed of 2 to 4 billion stars. The Andromeda Galaxy or M31 appears as a hazy star in this shot because of the lack of magnification. Even though it’s 2.2 million light years away, astronomically speaking, it’s still close to us. In fact, it’s the closest large galaxy to our own Milky Way Galaxy. Astronomers like to say it’s in the neighborhood or a part of the “local group” of galaxies. The Andromeda Galaxy is also said to be the farthest object visible with the naked eye, and under a suburban sky it’s pretty easy to spot this galaxy. There is another galaxy in this picture. Have you spotted it yet? It is tough to see I admit but it’s there none the less. It’s the Triangulum Galaxy or M33 and it’s located in the upper left of the picture. M33 is a little farther out than M31 at about 3 million light years. It’s a face-on spiral galaxy and the second brightest galaxy in the northern sky next to M31.