Press Release 05-027 Astronomers Follow Distant Galaxy at a Snail's Pace
M33 tracked across the sky, rather than toward or away from Earth
March 3, 2005
In a feat akin to tracking a snail across the surface of Mars--only more arduous--astronomers using the National Science Foundation's Very Long Baseline Array telescope system have made the first measurements of a neighboring galaxy's "proper" motion across the sky—a finding that could yield important new insight into the history and fate of our own galaxy.
For more information, see the National Radio Astronomy Observatory's press release.
-NSF-
Media Contacts
Dave Finley, NRAO (505) 835-7302 dfinley@nrao.edu
M. Mitchell Waldrop, NSF (703) 292-8070 mwaldrop@nsf.gov
David Aguilar, Center for Astrophysics (617) 495-7462 daguilar@cfa.harvard.edu
Program Contacts
Andrew W. Clegg, NSF (703) 292-4892 aclegg@nsf.gov
Related Websites The Very Long Baseline Array site: http://www.vlba.nrao.edu/
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