Public domain
Hubble Peers into the Heart of a Galactic Maelstrom
From the collection of NASA Image and Video Library. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image shows Messier 96, a spiral galaxy just over 35 million light-years away in the constellation of Leo (The Lion). It is of about the same mass and size as the Milky Way. It was first discovered by astronomer Pierre Méchain in 1781, and added to Charles Messier’s famous catalogue of astronomical objects just four days later. The galaxy resembles a giant maelstrom of glowing gas, rippled with dark dust that swirls inwards towards the nucleus.
NASA Image and Video Library’s own descriptionSubjects
Credit lineHubble Peers into the Heart of a Galactic Maelstrom. NASA/GSFC, 2017-12-08. Public domain. ID: GSFC_20171208_Archive_e000623.
