Hubble Space Telescope captures vast cosmic wonderland

The Hubble Space Telescope image of a large expanse of space shows the galaxy SDSSJ225506.80 + 005839.9. Credit: ESA / Hubble & NASA, A. Zabludoff

This large expanse of space captured with the The Hubble Space Telescope includes galaxy SDSSJ225506.80 + 005839.9. Unlike many other extravagant galaxies and stunning nebulae imaged by Hubble, this galaxy does not have a short, popular name and is only known by its long name SDSS, which refers to its coordinates in the sky. This galaxy – visible in the central right part of the image – and its many wonderful neighboring galaxies are found in the constellation Pisces (Pisces).

It is a post-starburst galaxy, which is a product of galaxies that have merged over the past billion years. This fusion event drove gas towards the center of the galaxy and created an abundance of new stars, the brightest of which are visible in the core of the remaining galaxy. The visible shells and tails surrounding the galaxies are also the result of this fusion event.

To reside well beyond our own Milky Way, it is almost impossible to see this galaxy without the help of Hubble, and, like thousands of similar faint and very distant galaxies, it has only been discovered and cataloged in recent years. Millions of galaxies still await our discovery as we build a wonderful picture of our night sky.