Space photo of the week: Bizarre 'Helix Galaxy' is unlike any other in the universe. Can you see why?

What it is: NGC 2685, a lenticular and "polar ring" galaxy 

Where it is: 40 million light-years away, in the constellation Ursa Major 

When it was shared: April 10, 2024 

Why it's so special: This is a new image of NGC 2685, also known as the "Helix Galaxy" or the "Pancake Galaxy." It's one of the most unusual galaxies in the universe. 

Galaxies are the neighborhoods of the visible universe. Home to gas, dust and all stars and planets, they're held together by gravity and come in a few specific types. The most common are elliptical galaxies, which look circular and usually contain older stars, according to NASA. Then there are spiral galaxies like our Milky Way, where stars exist in arms that give a pinwheel-like look. 

But NGC 2685 doesn't fit any of those types. It's classified as a lenticular galaxy because it has a central bulge but no spiral arms. As this image from the Gemini North telescope in Hawaii shows, it also has rings of gas, dust and stars orbiting in loops that are perpendicular to the flat plane of the galaxy. It's this peculiar characteristic that gives it the added description of a "polar ring" galaxy. The new image is an update to one taken in 1998 from Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona. 

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