The spiral galaxy is 50,000 light-years in diameter
National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) Hubble Space Telescope is known for capturing mesmerising images of outer space over the years. One such stunning image of the Sombrero galaxy was captured by the space telescope. The galaxy is located on the southern edge of the galaxy-rich Virgo cluster and is 28 million light-years from Earth.
Taking to Instagram, the space agency shared the image, which showed the galaxy in all its glory. It captures the galaxy in visible light, Spitzer Space Telescope viewed the galaxy in infrared in four different microns: blue, green, orange, and red.
Along with the image, the caption read, "The Sombrero galaxy is seen here nearly edge-on. The spiral galaxy is 50,000 light-years in diameter, around half the size of our Milky Way galaxy. At the Sombrero galaxy's centre, scientists estimate there is a black hole that is around a billion times more massive than our Sun."
See the post here:
In the picture, the left and right edges of the Sombrero galaxy appear red, the middle of the rings appear yellow-green, and the centre of the galaxy appears light blue with a white core. Stars and galaxies appear dotted across the image.
Earlier, NASA shared a stunning and captivating image taken by the Hubble Space Telescope showcasing a distant galaxy that experienced a powerful supernova event not long ago.