Starburst (symbol)

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A starburst is graphic design or typographical element that resembles diverging rays of light or consists of a star-like image with rays emanating from it. [1] One is notably used as the current logo of the American retailer Walmart.

In Unicode, there are various star and asterisk symbols. The ones most commonly associated with the idea of a starburst are the "sixteen pointed asterisk" U+273A () and the "combining Cyrillic millions" character U+0489 (   ҉  ).

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The asterisk, from Late Latin asteriscus, from Ancient Greek ἀστερίσκος, asteriskos, "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Messier 82</span> Starburst galaxy the constellation Ursa Major

Messier 82 (also known as NGC 3034, Cigar Galaxy or M82) is a starburst galaxy approximately 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. It is the second-largest member of the M81 Group, with the D25 isophotal diameter of 12.52 kiloparsecs (40,800 light-years). It is about five times more luminous than the Milky Way and its central region is about one hundred times more luminous. The starburst activity is thought to have been triggered by interaction with neighboring galaxy M81. As one of the closest starburst galaxies to Earth, M82 is the prototypical example of this galaxy type. SN 2014J, a type Ia supernova, was discovered in the galaxy on 21 January 2014. In 2014, in studying M82, scientists discovered the brightest pulsar yet known, designated M82 X-2.

Starburst most often refers to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Messier 61</span> Intermediate barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Virgo

Messier 61 is an intermediate barred spiral galaxy in the Virgo Cluster of galaxies. It was first discovered by Barnaba Oriani on May 5, 1779, six days before Charles Messier discovered the same galaxy. Messier had observed it on the same night as Oriani but had mistaken it for a comet. Its distance has been estimated to be 45.61 million light years from the Milky Way Galaxy. It is a member of the M61 Group of galaxies, which is a member of the Virgo II Groups, a series of galaxies and galaxy clusters strung out from the southern edge of the Virgo Supercluster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Starburst galaxy</span> Galaxy undergoing an exceptionally high rate of star formation

A starburst galaxy is one undergoing an exceptionally high rate of star formation, as compared to the long-term average rate of star formation in the galaxy or the star formation rate observed in most other galaxies. For example, the star formation rate of the Milky Way galaxy is approximately 3 M/yr, while starburst galaxies can experience star formation rates of 100 M/yr or more. In a starburst galaxy, the rate of star formation is so large that the galaxy will consume all of its gas reservoir, from which the stars are forming, on a timescale much shorter than the age of the galaxy. As such, the starburst nature of a galaxy is a phase, and one that typically occupies a brief period of a galaxy's evolution. The majority of starburst galaxies are in the midst of a merger or close encounter with another galaxy. Starburst galaxies include M82, NGC 4038/NGC 4039, and IC 10.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sculptor Galaxy</span> Intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Sculptor

The Sculptor Galaxy is an intermediate spiral galaxy in the constellation Sculptor. The Sculptor Galaxy is a starburst galaxy, which means that it is currently undergoing a period of intense star formation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 1569</span> Dwarf irregular galaxy in the constellation Camelopardalis

NGC 1569 is a dwarf irregular galaxy in Camelopardalis. The galaxy is relatively nearby and consequently, the Hubble Space Telescope can easily resolve the stars within the galaxy. The distance to the galaxy was previously believed to be only 2.4 Mpc. However, in 2008 scientists studying images from Hubble calculated the galaxy's distance at nearly 11 million light-years away, about 4 million light-years farther than previous thought, meaning it is a member of the IC 342 group of galaxies.

<i>Starburst</i> (magazine) British science fiction magazine and webzine

Starburst is a British science fiction magazine published by Starburst Magazine Limited. Starburst contains news, interviews, features, and reviews of genre material in various media, including TV, film, soundtracks, multimedia, books, and comics books. The magazine is published quarterly, with additional news and reviews being published daily on the website.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asterisk (liturgy)</span> Liturgical object covering the diskos in Byzantine liturgy

The Asterisk, or Star-cover, is one of the holy vessels used in the Divine Liturgy of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches. The asterisk symbolizes the Star of Bethlehem. Historically, it was also used in some parts of the Roman Catholic Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 4449</span> Irregular Magellanic type galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici

NGC 4449, also known as Caldwell 21, is an irregular Magellanic type galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici, being located about 13 million light-years away. It is part of the M94 Group or Canes Venatici I Group that is relatively close to the Local Group hosting our Milky Way galaxy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Order of the Direkgunabhorn</span>

The Most Admirable Order of the Direkgunabhorn was established by King Bhumibol Adulyadej on 22 July 1991 to be bestowed upon those who have rendered devotional services to the Kingdom of Thailand. The title Direkgunabhorn roughly translates as "Noble Order of Abundance and Quality".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 1313</span> Barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Reticulum

NGC 1313 is a field galaxy and a barred spiral galaxy discovered by the Scottish astronomer James Dunlop on 27 September 1826. It has a diameter of about 50,000 light-years, or about half the size of the Milky Way.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hen 2-10</span> Galaxy in the constellation Pyxis

Hen 2-10, also known as He 2-10 and Henize 2-10, is a dwarf starburst galaxy located 34 million light years away in the constellation of Pyxis. The galaxy is believed to be an early stage starburst galaxy. A black hole was later discovered near the center of the dwarf galaxy, suggesting that the black holes found at the center of most large galaxies may have formed before the galaxies themselves. Recent estimates have placed the mass of this black hole around 3×106 M, and the mass of the entire dwarf galaxy at about 1×1010 M.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phoenix Cluster</span> Massive Abell class type I galaxy cluster

The Phoenix Cluster is a massive, Abell class type I galaxy cluster located at its namesake, southern constellation of Phoenix. It was initially detected in 2010 during a 2,500 square degree survey of the southern sky using the Sunyaev–Zel'dovich effect by the South Pole Telescope collaboration. It is one of the most massive galaxy clusters known, with the mass on the order of 2×1015M, and is the most luminous X-ray cluster discovered, producing more X-rays than any other known massive cluster. It is located at a comoving distance of 8.57 billion light-years from Earth. About 42 member galaxies were identified and currently listed in the SIMBAD Astronomical Database, though the real number may be as high as 1,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 908</span> Unbarred spiral galaxy in the constellation Cetus

NGC 908 is an unbarred spiral galaxy in the constellation Cetus. It was discovered in 1786 by William Herschel. This galaxy is 56 million light years away from Earth. It is the main galaxy in the NGC 908 group, which also includes NGC 899, NGC 907, and IC 223.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 1614</span> Spiral galaxy in the constellation Eridanus

NGC 1614 is the New General Catalogue identifier for a spiral galaxy in the equatorial constellation of Eridanus. It was discovered on December 29, 1885 by American astronomer Lewis Swift, who described it in a shorthand notation as: pretty faint, small, round, a little brighter middle. The nebula was then catalogued by Danish-Irish astronomer J. L. E. Drayer in 1888. When direct photography became available, it was noted that this galaxy displayed some conspicuous peculiarities. American astronomer Halton Arp included it in his 1966 Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies. In 1971, Swiss astronomer Fritz Zwicky described it as a "blue post-eruptive galaxy, compact patchy core, spiral plumes, long blue jet SSW".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 2782</span> Peculiar spiral galaxy in the constellation Lynx

NGC 2782 is a peculiar spiral galaxy that formed after a galaxy merger in the constellation Lynx. The galaxy lies 75 million light years away from Earth, which means, given its apparent dimensions, that NGC 2782 is approximately 100,000 light years across. NGC 2782 has an active galactic nucleus and it is a starburst and a type 1 Seyfert galaxy. NGC 2782 is mentioned in the Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies in the category galaxies with adjacent loops.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MCG+07-33-027</span> Isolated spiral galaxy in the constellation Hercules

MCG+07-33-027 is an isolated spiral galaxy located about 330 million light-years away in the constellation Hercules. It has a very high rate of star formation which would make it a starburst galaxy. Normally, starburst galaxies are triggered by the collision of another galaxy. However most galaxies are in groups or clusters, while MCG+07-33-027 is solitary. Therefore, the cause of the starburst was not due to a collision or by the passing of a nearby galaxy and so the cause of the activity remains unknown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 6810</span> Spiral Galaxy in the constellation of Pavo

NGC 6810 is a spiral galaxy approximately 87 million light-years away from Earth in the constellation of Pavo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NGC 7130</span> Peculiar spiral galaxy in the constellation Piscis Austrinus

NGC 7130 is a spiral galaxy located in the constellation Piscis Austrinus. It is located at a distance of circa 220 million light years from Earth, which, given its apparent dimensions, means that NGC 7130 is about 100,000 light years across. It was discovered by John Herschel on September 25, 1834, and discovered independently by Lewis Swift on September 17, 1897. The location of the galaxy given in the New General Catalogue was off by 30 arcminutes in declination from the location of the galaxy.

References

  1. "Starburst". The Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary. 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2012.