These are the irregular galaxies, and each one is unique in shape, age and structure. spiral galaxy elliptical galaxy gravity; Notes. By Admin. The irregular shape may be the result of a disturbance, perhaps a collision of two galaxies.

You may already be familiar with the galaxies: spiral, barred spiral, elliptical and irregular. NGC 4449, also known as Caldwell 21, is an irregular galaxy located 12.5 million light-years away in the constellation Canes Venatici.

Spiral galaxies. It is called an irregular galaxy. The irregular shape may be the result of a disturbance, perhaps a collision of two galaxies. Irregulars may once have been other types of galaxies, but have since lost their structure due to disorders in gravitational pull.
Scientists and astronomers believe that galaxies were formed within milliseconds after the cosmic “big bang” around 10-20 billion years ago. It's part of the M94 Group (or Canes Venatici I Group), a galaxy group close to the Local Group.With an apparent magnitude of +9.4, it's within binocular range but challenging.

The ring galaxy is considered an irregular shape. Unlock Content Over 79,000 lessons in all major subjects Galaxy - Galaxy - Irregular galaxies: Most representatives of this class consist of grainy, highly irregular assemblages of luminous areas. Teacher PDF (126KB) As presented below. The shape of an irregular galaxy is uncommon – they do not fall into any of the regular classes of the Hubble sequence, and they are often chaotic in appearance, with neither a nuclear bulge nor any trace of spiral arm structure. An extremely small number of them, however, are red and have a smooth, though nonsymmetrical, shape. The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is an irregular-shaped galaxy in the Local Group. At one time, the LMC was a spiral galaxy, but over time, it lost its spiral shape and is now an irregular galaxy.

The irregular galaxy is one of three types of galaxies.
So what if a galaxy doesn't really have a definite shape? Elliptical galaxies.

Reflections Vocabulary. Sagittarius Dwarf Irregular Galaxy The Large Magellanic Cloud is another galaxy, very similar to NGC 4449, that has a pronounced central bar, and probably started as a Barred Spiral, and became disrupted by interactions with the Milky Way and the Smaller Magellanic Cloud; see picture to the right. Irregular II Galaxies (Irr II): The second type of irregular galaxy does not have any feature what so ever. All galaxies are about the same age and Irregular Galaxies were more common when the universe was younger. They do not fall into any of the regular classes of the Hubble sequence, and they are often chaotic in appearance, with neither a central bulge nor any trace of spiral arm structure. Graphic Organizer: Galaxy types compared.