--- title: "Astronomy Photo of the Day (APotD): 08/25/14 – NGC 4438" description: "[caption id=\"attachment_524\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"576\"] Image credit: Ken Crawford (Rancho Del Sol Observatory) via NASA[/caption] In this stunning image, two galaxies, which are about 50 million light-years from Earth, are separated by a short distance of only 100,000 light-years. Most non-interacting galaxies are separated by distances exceeding one million light-years in comparison. The more massive of the..." date: "2014-08-25" modified: "2014-08-25" authors: - name: "Jaime Trosper" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jaimefqtq.md" url: "https://futurism.com/apod-ngc-4438" categories: - "From Quarks to Quasars" --- # Astronomy Photo of the Day (APotD): 08/25/14 – NGC 4438 ![]() [![]()]() **Image credit: Ken Crawford (Rancho Del Sol Observatory) via NASA** In this stunning image, two galaxies, which are about 50 million light-years from Earth, are separated by a short distance of only 100,000 light-years. Most non-interacting galaxies are separated by distances exceeding one million light-years in comparison. The more massive of the two, NGC 4438, has managed to hang on to a majority of the material that was torn away from the much smaller galaxy, NGC 4435, [through tidal interactions](). Astronomers have speculated that, at their closest point, the galaxies passed within just 16,000 light-years of each other. Both NGC 4435 and NGC 4438, which are commonly known as 'The Eyes' (though I see a percentage mark), belong to a string of galaxies known as [Markarian's Chain]() (they can be found within the heart of the Virgo Galaxy Cluster, which is comprised of approximately 1,300 to 2,000 galaxies). *A larger version of this image is available for download [here]().* ## Author Jaime is a freelance writer, who finds great joy in sharing the wonders of universe with others. She used this passion to launch "From Quarks to Quasars" in 2012.