Dark Energy Camera Captures Stunning 570-Megapixel View of Sombrero Galaxy

Mounted on the NSF's Victor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, the 570-megapixel Dark Energy Camera has achieved an extraordinary side-on capture of Messier 104, known as the Sombrero Galaxy. This galaxy, situated 30 million light-years away and measuring 50,000 light-years across, ranks among the largest entities in the Virgo Galaxy Cluster. For the first time, NOIRLab notes, the image showcases a luminous halo that extends three times the galaxy's width. Additionally, the camera's high sensitivity revealed a stellar stream from the southern region, indicating a historical galactic merger. The core of the galaxy contains a supermassive black hole and roughly 2,000 globular clusters, with a dark band of cold dust and hydrogen gas outlining its disk.