In today's image, we see the spiral galaxy known as Messier 81. This is a relatively nearby galaxy, about 11.8 million light years away. Distances to nearby spiral galaxies like this one can be determined through the measurements of variable stars.

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This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.

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