Heritage Project Celebrates Five Years of Harvesting the Best Images from Hubble Space Telescope

Running Time: 1 minute

The Sombrero galaxy's hallmark is a brilliant white, bulbous core encircled by the thick dust lanes comprising the spiral structure of the galaxy. This brilliant galaxy was named the Sombrero galaxy because of its resemblance to the broad rim and high-topped Mexican hat. The Sombrero lies at the southern edge of the rich Virgo cluster of galaxies and is one of the most massive objects in that group.

Video Credit: NASA and G. Bacon (STScI)