M104 The Sombrero Galaxy

The Sombrero Galaxy (also known as M104 or NGC 4594) is a lenticular galaxy in the constellation Virgo found 31,100,000 light years from Earth. The galaxy has a diameter of approximately 50,000 light-years, about 30% the size of the Milky Way. It has a bright nucleus, an unusually large central bulge, and a prominent dust lane in its inclined disk. The dark dust lane and the bulge give this galaxy the appearance of a sombrero hat. Astronomers initially thought that the halo was small and light, indicative of a spiral galaxy, but the Spitzer Space Telescope found that the dust ring around the Sombrero Galaxy is larger and more massive than previously thought, indicative of a giant elliptical galaxy. Its large bulge, its central supermassive black hole, and its dust lane all attract the attention of astronomers and astrophotographers.