Flocculent spiral galaxy

A flocculent spiral galaxy is a type of spiral galaxy. Unlike the well-defined spiral architecture of a grand design spiral galaxy, flocculent (meaning "flaky") galaxies are patchy, with discontinuous spiral arms.^[1]^[2] Self-propagating star formation is the apparent explanation for the structure of flocculent spirals.^[3] Approximately 30% of spirals are flocculent, 10% are grand design, and the rest are referred to as "multi-armed".^[4] The multiple-arm type is sometimes grouped into the flocculent category.^[5]

The prototypical flocculent spiral is NGC 2841.^[6]

List of flocculent spiral galaxies

Example	Class	Constellation	Notes
NGC 1325	SBbc	Eridanus
NGC 1353	SBb	Eridanus
NGC 2775	SA(r)ab	Cancer	^[7]
NGC 2841	SA(r)b	Ursa Major	^[6]
NGC 3521	SAB(r s)bc	Leo	^[6]
NGC 4298	SA(r s)c	Coma Berenices
NGC 4414	SA(r s)c	Coma Berenices	^[8]
NGC 7793	SA(s)d	Sculptor	^[6]
Sunflower Galaxy (Messier 63)	SAB(r s)cd	Canes Venatici	^[9]

References

^ COSMOS – SAO Encyclopedia of Astronomy, "Grand Design Spiral" (Retrieved 23 April 2010)
^ COSMOS – SAO Encyclopedia of Astronomy, "Flocculent Spiral" (Retrieved 23 April 2010)
^ Masters, Karen (September 2002), What is the Origin of Spiral Structure in Galaxies, archived from the original on 9 June 2007, retrieved 30 May 2007
^ Case Western Reserve University, Chris Mihos, ASTR222 – Spring 2008, "Spiral Structure" (Retrieved 23 April 2010)
^ University of Virginia, Mark Whittle, ASTR 553/554 : Extragalactic Astronomy (2007), "Lecture 5: Spiral Galaxies" Archived 7 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine (Retrieved 23 April 2010)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "A Near-Infrared Atlas of Spiral Galaxies", Debra Meloy Elmegreen, "CH3. Discussion" (Retrieved 23 April 2010)
^ "Hubble Spots Feathered Spiral". NASA. 2 July 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
^ Nemiroff, R.; Bonnell, J., eds. (3 April 2002). "NGC 4414: A Flocculent Spiral Galaxy". Astronomy Picture of the Day. NASA. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
^ NASA (2015). [1]. Retrieved 2 March 2017

Sources

PDF A Near-Infrared Atlas of Spiral Galaxies, Debra Meloy Elmegreen, 1981, doi:10.1086/190757, Bibcode:1981ApJS...47..229E

External links

COSMOS astronomy encyclopedia – Flocculent Spiral

[1] COSMOS – SAO Encyclopedia of Astronomy, "Grand Design Spiral" (Retrieved 23 April 2010)

[2] COSMOS – SAO Encyclopedia of Astronomy, "Flocculent Spiral" (Retrieved 23 April 2010)

[Masters-3] Masters, Karen (September 2002), What is the Origin of Spiral Structure in Galaxies, archived from the original on 9 June 2007, retrieved 30 May 2007

[4] Case Western Reserve University, Chris Mihos, ASTR222 – Spring 2008, "Spiral Structure" (Retrieved 23 April 2010)

[5] University of Virginia, Mark Whittle, ASTR 553/554 : Extragalactic Astronomy (2007), "Lecture 5: Spiral Galaxies" Archived 7 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine (Retrieved 23 April 2010)

[Elmegreen-1981-CH3-6] "A Near-Infrared Atlas of Spiral Galaxies", Debra Meloy Elmegreen, "CH3. Discussion" (Retrieved 23 April 2010)

[7] "Hubble Spots Feathered Spiral". NASA. 2 July 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2020.

[8] Nemiroff, R.; Bonnell, J., eds. (3 April 2002). "NGC 4414: A Flocculent Spiral Galaxy". Astronomy Picture of the Day. NASA. Retrieved 23 April 2010.

[9] NASA (2015). [1]. Retrieved 2 March 2017

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]