Hubble has captured quasar PG 1012+008, located 1.6 billion light-years from Earth, merging with a bright galaxy (the object just below the quasar).

The two objects are 31, 000 light-years apart, but the swirling wisps of dust and gas surrounding the quasar and galaxy provide strong evidence for an interaction between them.

Credit: John Bahcall (Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton) Mike Disney (University of Wales) and NASA/ESA