A beautiful example of a type of galaxy known as a barred spiral

Hubble Sees Elegant Spiral Hiding a Hungry Monster

The galaxy’s spiral arms are sprinkled with bright regions of active star formation. Each of these tiny jewels is actually several hundred light-years across and contains hundreds or thousands of newly formed stars. But NGC 4639 also conceals a dark secret in its core — a massive black hole that is consuming the surrounding gas.

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Hubble Sees Elegant Spiral Hiding a Hungry Monster