This is the "Whirlpool Galaxy" (aka M51) photographed with my telescope and astrophotography camera.
This "grand spiral" galaxy is 31 million light years away. If you look closely, you can see two "arms" of space dust swirling outward from the core. The red pockets within the arms are where clusters of new stars are being created.
It looks like the Whirlpool Galaxy is absorbing the smaller galaxy in the photo (NGC 5195). This is not exactly true. The smaller galaxy is passing *behind* the Whirlpool galaxy, but the two are connected by a bridge of material as their gravitational forces interact. In fact, the smaller galaxy's gravitational force is so strong that it creates "gravity ripples" throughout the Whirlpool Galaxy.
A "gravity ripple" is a "distortion in the fabric of spacetime caused by accelerating massive objects." Think of it as the ripples on a pond if you dropped a rock in the middle of it. Unlike water ripples, *gravity ripples* travel at the speed of light. We actually have specialized "LIGO" instruments on Earth that can detect this force, in other words, that can "see" gravitational waves.
These "gravity ripples" coming from the smaller galaxy cause the gas clouds in the Whirlpool Galaxy to squish together, which triggers star formation. The smaller galaxy is essentially responsible for creating the spiral arms in the Whirlpool Galaxy.
High resolution photo available here: https://astrob.in/full/0pra2e/0/ (click "Full Resolution" button at top right)
