Merging Spiral Galaxies - simulating visual appearance
This video shows a computer simulation of the appearance of two merging spiral galaxies as they would appear through a telescope, including absorption of starlight by interstellar dust. The colors are approximately what would be perceived by the human eye. Credits: Patrik Jonsson, Greg Novak & Joel Primack, University of California, Santa Cruz.
This movie won a semifinalist honor (top ten in the category) in the 2008 NSF Science & Engineering Visualization Challenge, and was also featured in the National Geographic Special "Inside the Milky Way" in 2010. A high-quality version can be downloaded from http://code.google.com/p/sunrise/wiki...
The song is "All's Well that Ends Well" by Nancy Abrams. You can find her web site at http://expandinguniverse.org/.
For a different view of the same simulation, check out • Merging Spiral Galaxies - dynamic stretch and • Merging Spiral Galaxies - linear stretch that give a better appreciation for how the brightness of the galaxies changes through the merger.