The Hubble Space Telescope pictures galaxy NGC 1672. It is an example of an active star-forming galaxy in the Earth's cosmic backyard—a mere 60 million light-years distant. The starry arms of barred spiral galaxies like this do not twist all the way into the center. Astronomers think the unique dynamics channel gas from the disk in towards the nucleus, which creates areas of star formation. Clusters of hot young blue stars form along the spiral arms. Interstellar dust scatters blue light which reddens the light of the distant stars and galaxies behind, to give the illusion they are embedded in the foreground galaxy. The bright diamond-like objects are foreground stars in our own Milky Way Galaxy.

ASU astronomer Rogier Windhorst studies birth and evolution of the earliest and most distant galaxies in the universe (see "Fate and Stars"). This mind-bending endeavor also has resulted in a medical diagnostic method here on Earth (see "Stars and Medicine").

Image courtesy NASA, EA, STSCI