The Hubble Space Telescope is the gift that keeps on giving. For more than 20 years now it has been churning out spectacular views of the cosmos. And this latest image of the galaxy NGC 7714 is no exception.
![Hubble image of NGC 7714. [credit: NASA / ESA]](https://www.colinstuart.net/wp-content/webpc-passthru.php?src=http://www.colinstuart.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/ngc.jpg&nocache=1)
Hubble image of NGC 7714. [credit: NASA / ESA]
It beautifully illustrates how, over time, gravity can sculpt wondrous sights out of galaxies. A nearby galaxy – which underwent an encounter with NGC 7714 around 100 million years ago – has pulled out some of its stars and gas to form a long thread of material. For scale, the main body (the blue bit) is around 2,000 light years across.