Click through the gallery to see this week's helping of the best the universe has to offer. And if you need more when you’re done but can’t wait until the next one, here’s the entire collection.
Space Photos of the Week: This Cloud's Going Places
Space photos of the week, January 24–30, 2016.
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<a href="http://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/hubble-sees-monstrous-cloud-boomerang-back-to-our-galaxy">Saxton/Lockman/NRAO/AUI/NSF/Mellinger</a>
SPoW-Jan29-02b
Hundreds of enormous, high-velocity gas clouds whiz around the outskirts of our galaxy, but the Smith Cloud is unique because its trajectory is well known. Discovered in the 1960s, astronomers believe it was launched from the outer regions of the galactic disk around 70 million years ago. It’s now on a return collision course and is expected to plow into the Milky Way in about 30 million years, where it will ignite a spectacular burst of star formation. The Smith Cloud is made of hydrogen gas and can’t be seen in visible light. This image a false-color composite created by Hubble to show its size and location in space.
