M83 is one ofthe closest and brightes spiral galaxies onthe sky.Visible with binoculars in the constellation o Hydra, majestic spiral armshave prompted its nickname as the Southern Pinwheel.Although discovered 250 years ago, onlymuch later was it appreciated that M83 was not a nearby gas cloud, but a barredspiral galaxy much like our own Milky Way Galaxy. M83, pictured above in a photograph from VeryLarge Telescope, is a prominent member of a group of galaxies that includes Centaurus A and NGC 5253, all of which lie about 15 million light years distant. To date, six supernova explosions have been recorded in M83. An intriguing doublecircumnuclear ring has been discovered at the center of M83.
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