Kilonova in Galaxy NGC 4993

The lenticular galaxy NGC 4993 is located about 130 million light-years from Earth. On August 17, 2017, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) and the Virgo Interferometer both detected gravitational waves from the collision of two neutron stars within this galaxy. The event also resulted in a flare of light, called a kilonova, which is visible to the upper left of the galactic center in this image. NGC 4993 was discovered by William Herschel and is located in the constellation Hydra, the Water Snake, or Sea Serpent.