Andromeda's Core

The center of the Andromeda galaxy is beautiful but strange. Andromeda , indexed as M31, is so close to our own Milky Way Galaxy that it gives a unique perspective into galaxy composition by allowing us to see into its core. Billions of stars swarm around a center that has two nuclei and likely houses a supermassive black hole over 5 million times the mass of our Sun . M31 is about two million light years away and visible with the unaided eye towards the constellation of Andromeda, the princess . Pictured above , dark knots of dust are seen superposed on the inner 10,000 light years of M31's core. The brighter stars are foreground stars located in our Milky Way Galaxy .