ANU: Most Detailed Radio Image of the Small Magellanic Cloud

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Astronomers Create Most Detailed Radio Image of Nearby Dwarf Galaxy
Australian National University | CSIRO | ASKAP | 2017 Nov 28

[img3="Atomic hydrogen gas in the Small Magellanic Cloud as imaged with CSIRO's
Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP). Credit: ANU / CSIRO"]http://www.anu.edu.au/files/styles/anu_ ... ropped.jpg[/img3][hr][/hr]

Astronomers at ANU have created the most detailed radio image of nearby dwarf galaxy, the Small Magellanic Cloud, revealing secrets of how it formed and how it is likely to evolve.

This image was taken by CSIRO's powerful new radio telescope, the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), and its innovative radio camera technology, known as phased array feeds.

The Small Magellanic Cloud, which is a tiny fraction of the size and mass of the Milky Way, is one of our nearest galactic neighbours and visible to the naked eye in the southern sky.

Co-lead researcher Professor Naomi McClure-Griffiths said the complex structure of the dwarf galaxy likely resulted, in part, from interactions with its companion, the Large Magellanic Cloud, and the Milky Way. ...