Backyard snapshot delivers stunning galaxy image | Space photo of the day for April 27, 2026

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This image of the Small Magellanic Cloud was captured with a camera and a wide-aperture telephoto lens from a mountain in Chile. (Image credit: NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/P. Horálek (Institute of Physics in Opava))

The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) looks spectacular in a new snapshot. But something about it might really surprise you.

It looks like this detailed image of a far-off galaxy was captured an advanced space telescope, or a huge ground-based scope. However, it was actually snapped with a camera sporting a telephoto lens from right here on Earth.

What is it?

The SMC is a dwarf galaxy that holds hundreds of millions of stars. The galaxy is near our very own Milky Way; in fact, it's one of our closest neighbors. Still, it is nearly 200,000 light-years away.

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Despite that distance, the SMC can be seen with the naked eye from the Southern Hemisphere.

This unique visibility may have played a role in this spectacular image, which was captured by Petr Horálek, a NOIRLab Audiovisual Ambassador, using a camera and a wide-aperture telephoto lens on the mountain Cerro Pachón in Chile. This image capture took four hours under the dark skies above the mountain.

Why is it incredible?

In looking at this photo, you might assume it was captured by a space telescope like Hubble. It's a detailed and striking view of this far-off galaxy.

But Horálek captured this image with just a camera and telephoto lens. NOIRLab's ambassador program is a joint venture with the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, and ambassadors share science with the public and their local communities.

This image is beautiful, but it also represents an exciting achievement in astrophotography.

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Logout Chelsea GohdContent Manager

Chelsea Gohd served as a Senior Writer for Space.com from 2018 to 2022 before returning in 2026, covering everything from climate change to planetary science and human spaceflight in both articles and on-camera in videos. With a M.S. in Biology, Chelsea has written and worked for institutions including NASA JPL, the American Museum of Natural History, Scientific American, Discover Magazine Blog, Astronomy Magazine, and Live Science. When not writing, editing or filming something space-y, Gohd is writing music and performing as Foxanne, even launching a song to space in 2021 with Inspiration4. You can follow her online @chelsea.gohd and @foxanne.music