Here is the “hidden galaxy” that appears.
This glorious image from the Hubble Space Telescope features the spiral galaxy IC 342, also known as Caldwell 5. No matter what you call this galaxy, scientists have struggled to observe it due to obstacles in its path, which earned it its “hidden” nickname, according to NASA.
“It appears near the equator of the Milky Way’s nacreous disk, which is cluttered with thick cosmic gas, black dust, and bright stars that obscure our view,” NASA wrote in a May 11 statement. (opens in a new tab).
Related: The best Hubble Space Telescope images ever!
Hubble can look through the debris, to some extent, because the telescope has infrared capabilities. Infrared light is scattered less by dust and allows a clearer view of the galaxy behind interstellar matter.
“This sparkling, frontal view of the center of the galaxy displays tendrils of dust intertwined in dramatic arms that wrap around a bright core of hot gas and stars,” NASA wrote of the image. .
“This nucleus is a specific type of region called the H II nucleus – an area of atomic hydrogen that has ionized. These regions are energy cradles of stars where thousands of stars can form in a few million years. .”
Blue stars ionize or energize the hydrogen surrounding their birthplaces due to the emission of ultraviolet light, NASA said. The galaxy would be one of the brightest galaxies in our sky if it weren’t for so much dust in its path.
IC 342 is also relatively close in galactic terms, just 11 million light-years from Earth. It’s about half the diameter of our own Milky Way (50,000 light-years across), which also makes it relatively large.
Hubble has been in space for a generation and has photographed this galaxy many times. You can also spot his imagery of IC 342 in 2017 (opens in a new tab) and 2010 (opens in a new tab).
Follow Elizabeth Howell on Twitter @howellspace (opens in a new tab). Follow us on twitter @Spacedotcom (opens in a new tab) or facebook.