The Sombrero Galaxy from HST . ... Credit Copyright: Hubble Heritage Team ( AURA / STScI / NASA ) Explanation: Why does the Sombrero Galaxy look like a hat? Reasons include the Sombrero 's unusually large and extended central bulge of stars, and dark prominent dust lanes that appear in a disk that we see nearly edge-on . Billions of old stars cause the diffuse glow of the extended central bulge. ... NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers . NASA Official: Jay Norris. ...