Object Name:

M81, NGC 3031, Bode's Galaxy

Object Description:

Spiral Galaxy

Position (J2000):

R.A. 09h 55m 33s
Dec. +69° 03' 55"

Constellation:

Ursa Major

Distance:

Approximately 11.6 million light-years (3.6 megaparsecs)

Dimensions:

This image is roughy 19 arcminutes (64,000 light-years or roughly 20 kiloparsecs) wide.

Data Description:

The ACS data was from the HST proposal 10584: A. Zezas, G. Fabbiano, A. Prestwich, and M. Garcia (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics), J. Gallagher (University of Wisconsin, Madison), J. Miller (University of Michigan), P. Kaaret (University of Iowa), V. Kalogera (Northwestern University), M. Ward (University of Durham), and A. King (University of Leicester); and proposal 10250: J. Huchra, P. Barmby, and B. Mcleod (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics) and J. Brodie and J. Strader (University of California, Santa Cruz).

Instrument:

ACS/WFC

Filters:

F435W (B), F606 (V), and F814W (I)

Exposure Date:

Various dates from 2004 - 2006

Image Credit:

NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)

Release Date:

May 28, 2007

Color:

This image is a composite of many separate exposures made by the ACS instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope. Three filters were used to sample light from broad wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic image. In this case, the assigned colors are:

Orientation/Scale: