A gorgeous spiral galaxy
some 100 million light-years distant, NGC
1309 lies on the banks
of the constellation of the River (Eridanus). NGC 1309
spans about 30,000 light-years, making it about one third the size of our
larger Milky Way galaxy.
Bluish clusters of young
stars and dust lanes are
seen to trace out NGC 1309's spiral arms as they wind around an older yellowish
star population at its core.
Not just another pretty
face-on spiral galaxy,
observations of NGC 1309's recent supernova and Cepheid
variable stars contribute to
the calibration of the expansion of the Universe.
Still, after you get
over this beautiful galaxy's grand design, check out the array of more distant background galaxies also recorded
in the above, sharp, reprocessed, Hubble Space Telescope view.
Image Credit: Hubble
Legacy Archive, ESA, NASA; Processing - Martin Pugh
