![An elongated collection of stars, gas and dust against the background of space. A bright foreground star is visible to the left.](https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/hubble_friday_04242015-jpg.webp?w=4096&format=png)
Extragalactic peculiarity
This galaxy goes by the name of ESO 162-17 and is located about 40 million light-years away in the constellation of Carina. At first glance this image seems like a fairly standard picture of a galaxy with dark patches of dust and bright patches of young, blue stars. However, a closer look reveals several peculiar features. Firstly, ESO 162-17 is what is known as a peculiar galaxy — a galaxy that has gone through interactions with its cosmic neighbors, resulting in an unusual amount of dust and gas, an irregular shape, or a strange composition.
Credits: ESA/Hubble & NASA
Image CreditESA/Hubble & NASA
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