Hubble offers the most perfect view of a gorgeous spiral galaxy
Put it on a postcard.
We can't guarantee a perfect photo opp from our fixed vantage point of the floating space rock called Earth. Space is vast, and three-dimensional. Things don't always line up as well as NGC 5468 does in this image captured by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The spiral galaxy that NASA highlighted in a Friday post is situated over 130 million light-years away from the point in space we call home. Our face-on look at NGC 5468 makes it easier to spot the massive explosion created collapsing stars, or supernovae.
According to NASA, NGC 5468 has been home to five separate supernovae over the past 20 years. I'm not familiar enough with stellar cartography to tell you where in this image those former stars might be located, or if that's even possible.
But the image speaks for itself, and that's the real reason we're here. If you want more, just spend a while browsing through Hubble's vast archives.
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
