Galaxy gallery

The best estimate by astronomers are 125 billion galaxies out there.

• Galaxies are huge star systems,made of stars and large amounts of gas and dust.

• They come in a range of sizes and shapes consisting of millions, billions or even trillions of stars.

• Some, known as active galaxies, have unexpected amounts of energy that come from star material falling into a black hole.

• Other galaxies are transformed by galactic collisions.

Sombrero Galaxy

Black Eye Galaxy

Cigar Galaxy

Cartwheel Galaxy

Spiral Galaxy

        A disc shaped galaxy with a central bulge and arms spiraling away from it.

Barred spiral Galaxy

        A spiral galaxy with a straight bar of stars that runs through the centre, like the Milky Way.

Elliptical Galaxy

        A collection of old stars that can be shaped like a ball, egg, or cigar.

Lenticular Galaxy

        This is lens-shaped galaxy that seems to bridge the gap between ellipticals and spirals.

Irregular Galaxy

        It can't be classed into any group due to no regular shape, yet it is rich in gas and dust.