You're looking at the combined visible (Hubble Space Telescope) and infrared (Spitzer Space Telescope) pictures of the Sombrero Galaxy [wiki], which was called that because of its resemblance to the broad rim Mexican hat! Link - via Spocko
You're looking at the combined visible (Hubble Space Telescope) and infrared (Spitzer Space Telescope) pictures of the Sombrero Galaxy [wiki], which was called that because of its resemblance to the broad rim Mexican hat! Link - via Spocko
http://terpsichore.stsci.edu/~summers/viz/hgast/hgast_imax_sombrero_galaxy_0510_1404x1024.jpg
- and it has been voted the best picture taken by the Hubble telescope (which is saying a lot!).
More info at the Hubble site -
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2003/28/image/a
including wallpaper images to fit your computer screen -
http://hubblesite.org/gallery/wallpaper/pr2003028a/
800 BILLION suns in this one galaxy. The mind reels.
--TwoDragons