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Sombrero Galaxy Fade (Visible, Near-Infrared, Mid-Infrared)

This video compares images of the Sombrero galaxy, also known as Messier 104 (M104). The first image shows visible light observed by the Hubble Space Telescope’s Advanced Camera for Surveys. The second is in near-infrared light and shows NASA's Webb Space Telescope’s look at the galaxy using NIRCam (Near-Infrared Instrument). The final image shows mid-infrared light observed by Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument).

  • Release Date
    June 3, 2025
  • Science Release
    NASA’s Webb Rounds Out Picture of Sombrero Galaxy’s Disk
    Read the release
  • Credit
    Video: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

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Related Images & Videos

Image of a galaxy on the black background of space. The galaxy is a very oblong, brownish yellowish disk that extends from left to right at an angle (from about 10 o’clock to 5 o’clock). Mottled dark brown patches rim the edge of the disk and are particularly prominent where they cross directly in front of the galaxy. The galaxy’s center glows white and extends above and below the disk. There are different colored dots, distant galaxies, speckled among the black background of space surrounding the galaxy. At the bottom right, there is a particularly bright foreground star with Webb’s signature diffraction spikes.

Sombrero Galaxy (NIRCam)

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope recently imaged the Sombrero Galaxy with its NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera), which shows dust from the galaxy’s outer ring blocking stellar light from stars within the galaxy.

Two observations of the Sombrero galaxy are split diagonally, with Webb’s near-infrared observation at the left and Webb’s mid-infrared observation on the right. The galaxy is a very oblong disk that extends from left to right at an angle, from about 10 o’clock to 5 o’clock. The galaxy’s core is in the center. In the near-infrared image at left, the galaxy’s center glows white and extends above and below the disk. The outer edge of the disk is mottled brown clumps. In the mid-infrared image, the galaxy is light blue and clumpy, like clouds in the sky. There is an inner disk that is clearer, with speckles of stars scattered throughout. The background of space is black, scattered with tiny dots in a range of colors.

Sombrero Galaxy (NIRCam/MIRI)

The Sombrero galaxy is split diagonally in this image: near-infrared observations from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope are at the left, and mid-infrared observations from Webb are at the right.

Image titled “James Webb Space Telescope; Sombrero Galaxy,” with compass arrows and color key. The galaxy is a very oblong, brownish yellowish disk that extends from left to right at an angle (from about 10 o’clock to 5 o’clock). The galaxy’s center glows white and extends above and below the disk. At the top right is a scale bar labeled 8,500 light-years. The length of the scale bar is about one fifth of the total image. At the bottom left are compass arrows indicating the orientation of the image on the sky. The east arrow points toward 10 o’clock. The north arrow points toward 1 o’clock. Below the image is a color key showing which NIRCam filters were used to create the image and which visible-light color is assigned to each filter. From left to right: F090W and F200W are blue, F212N and F277W are green, and F335M and F444W are red.

Sombrero Galaxy Compass

This image of the Sombrero galaxy, captured by the James Webb Space Telescope’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera), shows compass arrows, scale bar, and color key for reference.

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Details

Last Updated
Nov 13, 2025
Contact
Media

Laura Betz
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
laura.e.betz@nasa.gov

Video Credit

NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

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