The galaxies of the Virgo cluster are scattered across a telescope field of view approximately 4 degrees wide. Located about 50 million light-years away (1 light-year is the distance that light travels in one year, approximately 9.46 trillion kilometers), this galaxy cluster is the closest large galaxy cluster to our local group.
What stands out here are the bright elliptical galaxies of Virgo, with Messier object M87 located in the lower left, and M86 and M84 near the center-right. M86 and M84 are part of what is known as the Markarian chain, an visually impressive arrangement of galaxies that crosses the upper part of this frame. In the middle of the chain are two interacting galaxy pairs called NGC 4438 and NGC 4435, which are referred to by some as "Markarian’s Eyes."
Nevertheless, the massive elliptical galaxy M87 dominates the Virgo cluster. M87 is the home of the supermassive black hole that was first imaged by the Earth’s Event Horizon Telescope.