Embargoed Until: 9:00 a.m. (EDT) May 31, 2001

Hubble Unveils a Galaxy in Living Color

In this view of the center of the magnificent barred spiral galaxy NGC 1512, the Hubble telescope reveals a stunning 2,400 light-year-wide circle of infant star clusters. Astronomers generally believe that the giant bar, which is too faint to be seen in this image, funnels the gas to the inner ring, where massive stars are formed within numerous star clusters. Located 30 million light-years away, NGC 1512 is a neighbor of our Milky Way galaxy.

Credit: NASA, ESA, and D. Maoz (Tel-Aviv University and Columbia University)

Also on the team of scientists are Aaron Barth, Luis Ho, Amiel Sternberg, and Alex Filippenko.