A peculiar pair of
galaxies swirls together in a mesmerizing new photo from the Hubble Space Telescope.
Located some 800 million
light-years from Earth, the two spiral galaxies, known as IC 4271 or Arp 40, appear superimposed, with the smaller galaxy in front of its larger companion.
The larger galaxy is
classified as a Seyfert galaxy, a type of galaxy with an active core, according to a statement from NASA(opens in new tab),
An active galaxy is one
that has a supermassive black hole at its center. This monster black hole pulls in surrounding gas and dust
The larger of the two
galaxies in IC 4271 is believed to be a Type II Seyfert galaxy, meaning it is a very bright source of infrared and visible light
Hubble's Wide Field
Camera 3, whose sensitivity and powerful resolution allowed researchers to get a detailed view of the galactic pair.