What describes an irregular galaxy?
Irregular galaxies are the most unusual of galaxies. They don’t seem to fit into either the spiral or elliptical galaxy categories. They don’t have nice spiral arms, but they do have dark patches of gas and dust. Some irregular galaxies clearly look like two galaxies ran into each other!
What are 3 characteristics of irregular galaxies?
An irregular galaxy is the catchall name given to any galaxy that does not neatly fit into one of the categories of the Hubble classification scheme. They have no defined shape nor structure and may have formed from collisions, close encounters with other galaxies or violent internal activity.
What do irregular galaxies contain?
In general, irregular galaxies contain large amounts of gas and dust, and can exhibit a significant degree of star formation activity. The closest galaxy to the Milky Way happens to be an irregular galaxy called the Canis Major Dwarf.
How is an irregular galaxy formed?
So, how do irregulars form? It seems that they are typically formed through gravitational interactions and mergers of other galaxies. Most, if not all of them began life as some other galaxy type. Then through interactions with each other, they became distorted and lost some, if not all of their shape and features.
How does a irregular galaxy look like?
Irregular galaxies have no identifiable shape or structure to them. They are often chaotic in appearance, without a bulge or any trace of spiral arms. The different shapes and orientation of galaxies are a result of their history, which may have included interactions with other galaxies.
What color is a irregular galaxy?
bluer
Most representatives of this class consist of grainy, highly irregular assemblages of luminous areas. They have neither noticeable symmetry nor an obvious central nucleus, and they are generally bluer in colour than are the arms and disks of spiral galaxies.
What do irregular galaxies look like?
What color are irregular galaxies?
What are two characteristics of irregular shaped galaxies?
Irregular galaxies have no particular shape. They are among the smallest galaxies and are full of gas and dust. Having a lot of gas and dust means that these galaxies have a lot of star formation going on within them. This can make them very bright.
Which of the following best describes an irregular galaxy?
An irregular galaxy is a galaxy that does not have a distinct regular shape, unlike a spiral or an elliptical galaxy. Irregular galaxies do not fall into any of the regular classes of the Hubble sequence, and they are often chaotic in appearance, with neither a nuclear bulge nor any trace of spiral arm structure.
What are facts about irregular galaxies?
Some irregular galaxies were once spiral or elliptical galaxies but were deformed by an uneven external gravitational force. Irregular galaxies may contain abundant amounts of gas and dust. This is not necessarily true for dwarf irregulars. Irregular galaxies are commonly small, about one tenth the mass of the Milky Way galaxy.
What are the characteristics of an irregular galaxy?
An irregular galaxy is a galaxy that does not have a distinct regular shape, unlike a spiral or an elliptical galaxy. Irregular galaxies do not fall into any of the regular classes of the Hubble sequence , and they are often chaotic in appearance, with neither a nuclear bulge nor any trace of spiral arm structure.
How big is an average irregular galaxy?
Irregular galaxies as a class have no particular shape, and have no spherical or circular symmetries as the ellipticals and spirals do. There is a range of sizes, but irregulars tend to be small. They average about 20,000 light years in diameter.
What type of stars does an irregular galaxy have?
Typically, irregular galaxies have lower masses and luminosities than spiral galaxies. Irregular galaxies often appear disorganized, and many are undergoing relatively intense star formation activity. They contain both young population I stars and old population II stars.