What’s happened to the center of this galaxy? Dramatic dust lanes run across the center of unusual elliptical galaxy Centaurus A . These dust lanes are so thick they almost completely obscure the galaxy’s center in visible light . This is particularly unusual as Cen A ‘s older stars and oval shape are characteristic of a giant elliptical galaxy , a galaxy type typically low in dark dust. Pictured in this deep image is a complex network of foreground gas and dust, as well as shells of dim stars and a jet projecting to the upper right. Also known as NGC 5128, Cen A is surely the result of a galactic collision where many young dust-creating stars were formed. However, details of the creation of Cen A’s unusually active center and iconic central dust lanes are still being researched . Cen A lies only 13 million light years away, making it the closest active galaxy . Jigsaw Galaxy: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day Image Credit & Copyright: SADR Observatory Team: J-C Dalouzy , P. Bazart, M. Dherbécourt, C. Humbert, G. Leroy, J-P Quéau, H. Talbot, & E. Valin https://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-30-peculiar-elliptical-galaxy-centaurus-a/