This composite image of Arp 147 shows the pair of interacting galaxies in X-ray light from Chandra (pink) and optical data from Hubble (red, green, blue). Arp 147 contains the remnant of a spiral galaxy (right) that collided with the elliptical galaxy on the left that triggered an expanding wave of star formation. Young massive stars race through their evolution in a few million years or less and explode as supernovas, leaving behind neutron stars and black holes. Some of these black holes are seen as X-ray sources around the ring of the spiral.
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Revised: February 04, 2011