Andromeda Galaxy
About this celestial object
The Andromeda Galaxy M31 rises low and fills the wide field with delicate glow.
As the nearest large spiral to the Milky Way, Andromeda can be glimpsed with the naked eye under dark skies—its halo spans a vast region of the sky.
At 17° altitude and 73% humidity the atmosphere adds extra scatter; the 250 mm field emphasizes the impressive extent in the starry backdrop.
Many short exposures keep core and outskirts balanced.
Image and observation
Catalogue: M 31
Capture date: 2026-07-30
Total exposure: 13220 s
Imaging and processing: Ulrich Schwarz · Vespera Pro
Read the sky journey
Welcome to a journey through our cosmic neighbourhood. Before us lies the Andromeda Galaxy in the constellation of the same name – one of the most distant objects that can still be visible to the unaided eye under a dark sky. Its light takes about two and a half million years to reach us. This image reveals the bright inner disk, dark dust lanes, two satellite galaxies and, near the edge, an exceptional concentration of young stars.
Andromedagalaxie
M31 is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way. Its light travels for about two and a half million years; the image is dominated by its old, yellowish central bulge and inclined stellar disk.
The dark bands are cool dust silhouetted against the starlight. Farther out, gas, dust and young stars trace spiral structures and a prominent star-forming ring. Measurements of its rotation also provided important early evidence for unseen matter.
M32
M32 is a compact elliptical satellite of M31. Its stars are strongly concentrated toward the bright nucleus, which makes it appear small yet strikingly prominent in this image.
One leading interpretation suggests that M32 may be the surviving core of a formerly larger galaxy stripped of stars and gas through encounters with Andromeda. This remains a scientific hypothesis; its precise evolutionary history is not yet settled.
M110
M110, also catalogued as NGC 205, is a diffuse dwarf elliptical galaxy and another satellite of Andromeda. Its light is spread much more broadly than that of compact M32.
Despite its quiet elliptical appearance, M110 is not entirely inactive: Hubble observations reveal clouds of gas and dust together with a population of young blue stars near its centre, preserving evidence of comparatively recent star formation.
NGC 206
NGC 206 lies in the south-western disk of M31 and is its most conspicuous star cloud. It is not a separate galaxy, but a vast OB association within Andromeda itself.
Young, hot and massive stars from a comparatively recent episode of star formation are concentrated here. The fact that this structure appears as a distinct brightening even in an amateur image makes the extraordinary proximity of M31 tangible.