Messier 104 - The Sombrero Galaxy

Messier 104 (NGC 4594), widely known as the Sombrero Galaxy, is a striking spiral galaxy located in the constellation Virgo, at a distance of roughly 28–31 million light-years. Although often described as a spiral, its exact classification is unusual and debated; it is commonly listed as SA(s)a or even as a lenticular galaxy with an embedded disk. What makes M104 instantly recognizable is its brilliant central bulge intersected by a sharply defined, dark dust lane, giving the galaxy the appearance of a wide-brimmed hat seen nearly edge-on.

The Sombrero Galaxy is dominated by an enormous spheroidal bulge composed largely of old, metal-rich stars, surrounding a relatively thin and tightly wound disk. At its core resides a supermassive black hole with a mass on the order of a billion solar masses, consistent with the galaxy’s unusually large bulge. Despite its early-type appearance, M104 hosts a rich system of globular clusters—numbering in the thousands—which suggests a complex and possibly merger-rich evolutionary history. The dust lane itself traces colder interstellar material and subtle star formation within the disk, providing strong contrast against the luminous halo.

This image is based on 19 hours and 35 minutes of LRGB integration acquired with Telescope Live’s CHI-1-CMOS system.