The infrared image displays a view of the Andromeda Galaxy from the Herschel Space Observatory. As I have just learned, this galaxy (which is more than roughly twice the size of the Milky Way Galaxy) is the closest large spiral galaxy to our Milky Way, at a distance of 2.5 million light-years. On Messier's list, the Andromeda Galaxy is M31. Cool dust lanes and clouds comprise the galaxy, which is shown in false color in the picture. The red hues on the exterior parts designate starlight-heated dust, while the blue colors in the interior designate hotter dust warmed by stars in the central core. The dust is a tracer of molecular gas, and reveals that Andromeda Galaxy is stocked with a huge supply of material for future star formation.
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