NASA's Hubble Surveys Gigantic Galaxy (IMAGE)

NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

NASA's Hubble Surveys Gigantic Galaxy

Caption

This Hubble Space Telescope photograph showcases the majestic spiral galaxy UGC 2885, located 232 million light-years away in the northern constellation Perseus. The galaxy is 2.5 times wider than our Milky Way and contains 10 times as many stars. A number of foreground stars in our Milky Way can be seen in the image, identified by their diffraction spikes. The brightest star photobombs the galaxy's disk. The galaxy has been nicknamed "Rubin's galaxy," after astronomer Vera Rubin (1928-2016), who studied the galaxy's rotation rate in search of dark matter.

Credit

Credits: NASA, ESA and B. Holwerda (University of Louisville)

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