NASA news: Breathtaking Hubble picture reveals side-view of a spiral galaxy like Milky Way

The beautiful galaxy NGC 3432 sits in the constellation of Leo Minor or the Lesser Lion in the northern sky. The galaxy is a spiral cluster, much like our Milky Way, with spindly arms full of stars and cosmic material coiling around a central point. But in this striking NASA Hubble telescope picture, NGC 3432 was snapped from a side-on view, offering a new perspective on the galaxy. Instead of a twisting spiral in deep space, the Hubble picture instead shows a long, bright streak of light and gas stretching against the darkness of space. The European Space Agency (ESA), which operates the Hubble Telescope with NASA, said: “Believe it or not, this long, glowing streak, speckled with bright blisters and pockets of material is a spiral galaxy like our Milky Way. But how could that be?” There are four main types of galaxies astronomers have discovered deep in space. These are spiral galaxies like the Milky Way, lenticular galaxies, elliptical galaxies and so-called irregular galaxies. Spiral galaxies are the most common type found in the universe, accounting for approximately two-thirds of all discovered galaxies. READ MORE: Hubble telescope just snapped the BIGGEST fireworks in the galaxy ESA said: “It turns out that we see this galaxy, named NGC 3432 oriented directly edge-on to us from our vantage point here on Earth. “The galaxy’s spiral arms and bright core are hidden and we instead see the thin strip of its very outer reaches. “Dark bands of cosmic dust, patches of varying brightness and pink regions of star formation help with making out the true shape of NGC 3432 – but it’s still somewhat of a challenge.” Thankfully, orbital observatories like Hubble and telescopes here on Earth have seen enough spiral galaxies for astronomers to know what spiral galaxies look like at different orientations. Spiral galaxies are the most distinctive thanks to their curved arms and central bulge. The bulges seen at the heart of the galaxies contain strong concentrations of bright stars. The arms and the bulges are surrounded by a fainter halo of stars. READ MORE: What is the mysterious dark vortex NASA has just found on Neptune?