Hubble captures lenticular galaxy NGC 6684

The lenticular galaxy NGC 6684 bathes this picture from the NASA/ESA Hubble Area Telescope in a pale mild. Captured with Hubble’s Superior Digital camera for Surveys, this galaxy is round 44 million light-years from Earth within the constellation Pavo. Pavo—the Latin identify for peacock—is a constellation within the southern sky and one among 4 constellations collectively generally known as the Southern Birds.

Lenticular galaxies like NGC 6684 (lenticular means lens-shaped) possess a big disk however lack the outstanding spiral arms of galaxies just like the Andromeda Galaxy. This leaves them someplace between elliptical galaxies and spiral galaxies, and lends these galaxies a diffuse, ghostly look. NGC 6684 additionally lacks the darkish mud lanes that thread by means of different galaxies, including to its spectral look.

The information on this picture was captured throughout a census of the close by universe entitled Each Recognized Close by Galaxy, which goals to look at all galaxies inside 10 megaparsecs (32.6 million light-years) that the telescope has not already visited. Earlier than this program started, Hubble had noticed roughly 75% of those close by galaxies. Finishing this census will reveal insights into the celebrities making up all kinds of galaxies, in all kinds of environments.