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Galaxy Mergers Aren't Always Obvious

The JWST's Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) captured this image of the galaxy Centaurus A. MIRI revealed otherwise hidden structures and dust in the galaxy, including looping patterns and filaments. These are evidence of a past collision. The image also shows the galaxy's supermassive black hole, which is actively feeding and luminous. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI. Image Processing: A. Pagan (STScI), J. Depasquale (STScI), M. Garcia Marin (ESA Office at STScI)

Mergers are a part of a galaxy's life in this Universe. Though clear signs of these mergers fade over hundreds of millions of years, evidence is still present, yet obscured, in the galaxies that experience them. The powerful JWST has made it possible to find this evidence, and it did so recently for Centaurus A.



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