M 85 is a lenticular galaxy, in the Coma Berenices constellation. It is 60 million light-years away, and it is estimated to be 125,000 light-years across.
Between 4 billion to 7 billion years ago, M85 likely merged with another galaxy. M85 contains approximately 400 billion stars, and most of these stars are very old. However, the central region contains relatively young stars, under 3 billion years old, and these stars are thought to have formed in a late burst of star formation activity. The core of M85 may contain a supermassive black hole
Imaged in LRGB at Dark Sky New Mexico OTA CDK 24
Image Processing: Mark Hanson and Mike Selby