Wide-field view of Messier 66 (ground-based image)

This wide-field image of the sky around the spiral galaxy Messier 66 was created from photographs forming part of the Digitized Sky Survey 2. Located about 35 million light-years away from Earth, this galaxy is about 100 000 light-years across. The field of view is approximately 3.0 by 2.2 degrees across.