Home > Science Picture > Space Picture > Galaxies

Andromeda Galaxy and Moon

Item Number: NOA-00100000

Andromeda Galaxy and Moon

This picture was prepared for a popular talk in order to illustrate just how large the Andromeda galaxy is on the sky, and it sparked enough interest to warrant its inclusion in the gallery. Due to its low surface brightness, Andromeda's great size is not evident. Superimposing our Moon picture on our M31 picture at the same scale rather dramatizes the point. Note that both of these images were created in different years during the Research Experiences for Undergraduates program at Kitt Peak.

Credit: REU program, N.A.Sharp/NOAO/AURA/NSF