M82: Starburst in X-rays

Star formation occurs at a faster pace in M82 -- a galaxy with about 10 times the rate of massive star birth (and death) compared to our Milky Way . Winds from massive stars and blasts from supernova explosions have created the expanding cloud of million degree gas filling the above Chandra X-ray Observatory image of this remarkable starburst galaxy. The false color image even resolves bright spots which are likely shocked supernova remnants and X-ray bright binary stars . Also observed as a radio galaxy and a bright celestial infrared source, M82's aspect in optical pictures has led to its popular moniker, the Cigar Galaxy . M82's burst of star formation was likely triggered a mere 100 million years ago in the latest of a series of bouts with another large galaxy, M81 .