Nearby Dwarf Galaxy Leo I

Leo I is a dwarf spheroidal galaxy in the Local Group of galaxies dominated by our Milky Way Galaxy and M31 . Leo I is thought to be the most distant of the eleven known small satellite galaxies orbiting our Milky Way Galaxy . Besides the LMC and the SMC , all Milky Way satellite galaxies are small, dim, dwarf spheroidals , including the closest galaxy - the Sagittarius Dwarf . Leo I is more distant than most of them, thought to be about 250 kpc away. Although very little star-forming gas is visible in Leo I , analysis of star ages shows that stars have formed as recently as a billion years ago.