Hubble captures image of little-known spiral galaxy

WASHINGTON, July 13 (UPI) -- The Hubble Space Telescope seems to have an eye for beauty. The telescope recently captured a stunning image of a little-known, disk-shaped galaxy.

Officially named J04542829-6625280, but more often called LEDA 89996, the swirling cluster of stars is the epitome of a perfectly shaped spiral galaxy.

The twisting arms extend out from the center of the galaxy featuring both dark spots and bright spots. The dark splotches, dust and gas, are the raw materials for the brightly lit new star factories that populate the outer ends of the spiraling tentacles. Young stars give the arms their brightness and blue tint.

LEDA 89996 is found within the constellation Dorado and appears near the Large Magellanic Cloud, an irregular-shaped satellite galaxy that orbits the Milky Way.

The newly released image was captured using Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys.