Galaxy NGC 1097 is located about 48 million lightyears from Earth. (Photo: ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Sand, K. Sheth)
Stare into the eye of this spiral galaxy 48 million lightyears away
Posted: Mar 20, 2022 / 02:08 PM EDT
(NEXSTAR) – The Hubble Space Telescope captured a photo of a barred spiral galaxy that's so mesmerizing, you could get lost looking into its eye.
The galaxy, called NGC 1097, is located 48 million lightyears from Earth in a constellation called Fornax, according to the European Space Agency. The Hubble telescope is a joint project of NASA and the ESA.
"This picture reveals the intricacy of the web of stars and dust at NGC 1097's center, with the long tendrils of dust seen in a dark red hue," the ESA said in a press release.
The technology that went into capturing the image is intricate, the agency explained. The telescope used two of its cameras to capture the single image, combining their views to compose a photo that shows much more detail and captures more light than a human eye would be able to discern unaided.
Hubble telescope captures three galaxies in epic photo
"Raw images from telescopes are always in grayscale, only showing the amount of the light captured across all those wavelengths," said the ESA.
That means a filter is needed to help bring out the color in the photo. This final photo used seven filters total to show all of its color.
The Hubble Space Telescope recently celebrated 20 years of capturing beautiful deep space photos like these with its Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS).
"We knew ACS would add so much discovery potential to the telescope, but I don't think anybody really understood everything it could do. It was going to unlock the secrets of the universe," said Mike Massimino, one of the astronauts who installed the camera equipment on the telescope back in 2002.
Last week, NASA and the ESA released a photo captured by Hubble of a young star's "stellar tantrum," resulting in yet another epic photo.
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