An extended halo around the Sombrero Galaxy (M104). (Image credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURAImage Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLab), D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)) Share this article 0 Join the conversation Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Quick factsWhat it is: Sombrero Galaxy (M104)
Where it is: 30 million light-years away, in the constellations Virgo and Corvus
When it was shared: April 24, 2026
The central bulge and dark dust trail, which together resemble a traditional Mexican hat, give the Sombrero Galaxy (Messier 104, or M104) its nickname — but this new image of the galaxy from the powerful Dark Energy Camera reveals two never-before-seen features.
What sets this image apart are features that are usually too faint to detect. Surrounding the galaxy in this wide-angle image is an enormous, diffuse halo that extends far beyond the bright disk, stretching over three times the width of the sombrero itself and significantly increasing the galaxy's apparent size.
The image also captures a faint stellar stream stretching away from one side of the galaxy. This thin, curved feature is barely perceptible at first glance, but a closer inspection reveals it as a distinct arc of light beneath the galaxy as it's shown here. It breaks the galaxy's perfect symmetry and suggests past violent interactions with a smaller satellite galaxy.
The remarkable clarity of the image is due to the capabilities of the Dark Energy Camera, a 570-megapixel instrument mounted on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. Operated by the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab, the system is designed to detect extremely faint light, allowing both the bright core and the dim outer structures of the galaxy to be captured in a single image.
The new image comes in the wake of the James Webb Space Telescope's first-ever mid-infrared observations of the Sombrero Galaxy in 2024, which it improved upon in June 2025.
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Jamie CarterLive Science contributorJamie Carter is a Cardiff, U.K.-based freelance science journalist and a regular contributor to Live Science. He is the author of A Stargazing Program For Beginners and co-author of The Eclipse Effect, and leads international stargazing and eclipse-chasing tours. His work appears regularly in Space.com, Forbes, New Scientist, BBC Sky at Night, Sky & Telescope, and other major science and astronomy publications. He is also the editor of WhenIsTheNextEclipse.com.
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