Tranquil galaxy
© ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Jones, A. Riess et al
NGC 976 exists around 150 million light years from the Milky Way. This image was captured by Hubble and makes it seem like it’s a very tranquil galaxy, but it’s actually home to some of the most violent known supernova explosions. Scientists can use the uniform energy of these explosions to estimate not only the distance of the supernovae but also the distance of the entire galaxy from Earth.