Nearby Spiral Galaxy NGC 4945 . ... Credit Copyright: Petri Kehusmaa , Harlingten Atacama Observatory Explanation: Large spiral galaxy NGC 4945 is seen edge-on near the center of this cosmic galaxy portrait . In fact, NGC 4945 is almost the size of our own Milky Way Galaxy . ... Though the galaxy's central region is largely hidden from view for optical telescopes, X-ray and infrared observations indicate significant high energy emission and star formation in the core of NGC 4945 . ...