Messier 77 / Arp 37 - The Squid Galaxy

Messier 77 (NGC 1068), also Cetus A, often nicknamed the Squid Galaxy, is a nearby spiral galaxy in the constellation Cetus, located at a distance of roughly 45–50 million light-years. Classified as an (R)SA(rs)b galaxy, M77 is one of the most intensely studied galaxies in the sky because it hosts a powerful Seyfert II active galactic nucleus. At its core lies a supermassive black hole surrounded by a dense, dusty torus that obscures the nucleus in visible light, while energetic radiation escapes along the polar directions. This activity gives rise to complex ionization structures and makes M77 a cornerstone object in our understanding of active galactic nuclei. M77 is also catalogued as Arp 37 in Halton Arp’s Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies, because of its low surface brightness and apparent companions on arms.

Surrounding the bright nucleus is a well-defined spiral disk threaded with dust lanes and punctuated by star-forming regions. In deep imaging, the galaxy reveals faint outer extensions and asymmetric features shaped by internal dynamics and possible past interactions. The contrast between the calm, structured spiral arms and the violently active core is one of M77’s most compelling aspects. The “squid” nickname comes from the extended, filamentary structure that curls around the galaxy’s disc like tentacles of a squid.

This image is based on 11 hours of LRGB integration acquired with Telescope Live’s CHI-1-CMOS system.