Ring Galaxy
Example: Hoag’s Object
A rare galaxy with a bright ring of young stars around its core, sometimes with an empty-looking gap in between.
Key facts
- Shape
- Ring of stars around a core
- How common
- Rare
- Example shown
- Hoag’s Object
- Example’s distance
- About 550 million light-years
About the Ring Galaxy
How to recognise it
Ring galaxies have a ring of stars, often young and blue, around a central core. They are rare. Many are thought to form when a smaller galaxy passes through a larger one, sending a ripple of star formation outwards.
The example: Hoag’s Object
Hoag’s Object is about 550 million light-years away. Its yellow core of older stars is surrounded by a blue ring of young stars that is slightly wider than the Milky Way. How this particular galaxy formed is still not fully understood. Look closely at the gap and you can see another, more distant ring galaxy.
Sources
Facts checked: 29 October 2026
