Hubble Spies Barred Spiral Galaxy Edge-On

Otherwise known as ESO 364-37 or LEDA 18536, NGC 2188 is about 50,000 light-years across, half the size of our Milky Way Galaxy.

“Although NGC 2188 appears at first glance to consist solely of a narrow band of stars, it is classified as a barred spiral galaxy,” Hubble astronomers said.

“It appears this way from our viewpoint on Earth as the center and spiral arms of the galaxy are tilted away from us, with only the very narrow outer edge of the galaxy’s disk visible to us.”

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Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / R. Tully.

This Hubble image shows NGC 2188, a barred spiral galaxy located 27 million light-years away in the constellation of Columba.

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The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has taken a picture of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1073, which is found in the constellation of Cetus (The Sea Monster).


Most spiral galaxies in the Universe have a bar structure in their centre, and Hubble's image of NGC 1073 offers a particularly clear view of one of these.

Galaxies' star-filled bars are thought to emerge as gravitational density waves funnel gas toward the galactic centre, supplying the material to create new stars. The transport of gas can also feed the supermassive black holes that lurk in the centres of almost every galaxy.