
Intergalactic Bridge The Hubble Space Telescope has photographed a pair of galaxies that make up a cluster known as Arp 248. They are connected by a tidal tail, which acts as an intergalactic bridge. Arp 248 is a closely related group of three galaxies (also known as the Wilde Triplet). It is located 200 million light-years from the Milky Way toward the constellation Virgo. Two of the three galaxies in the triplet can be seen in the Hubble image. They are connected by a stream of stars, gas, and dust. This tidal tail is formed by the gravitational interactions of the members of the triplet. The third, smaller galaxy in the Hubble image is a more distant background object unrelated to Arp 248.























