WIYN Images: Spiral Galaxies

The WIYN Observatory is owned and operated by the WIYN Consortium, Inc., which consists of the University of Wisconsin, Indiana University, Yale University, and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO). NOAO is operated for the National Science Foundation by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), Inc.

The WIYN telescope is one of the best imaging telescopes in the world. Some examples are collected on these pages. If you plan to use any of these images for other than your personal enjoyment please read our conditions of use.

Spiral galaxies are rotating disk systems of stars, gas and dust. Due to their varying orientations in the sky, they may appear as face-on whirlpools, edge-on disks, or as something in between. Spirals are classified based on the tightness of their arms the size and shape of their nucleus. Those with an elongated bar-like center are called "barred spirals."

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Contact: Nigel Sharp, National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 N. Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, AZ 85726, Phone: (520) 318-8000, Fax: (520) 318-8360, email: images@noao.edu