Pictured above, NGC 4452 is a galaxy very similar to our own Milky Way, but this photo puts it at an angle in which we do not normally observe galaxy's. Spanning about 35,000 light years, this galaxy looks nearly two dimensional, like a sheet of paper, when observed from the side. However, if observed from above, this disk galaxy would appear as an ordinary galaxy. Of course, like our Milky Way, NGC 4452 is not actually paper thin. However, this photo gives an excellent perspective on the proportions of galaxies, and how much longer they are than wide. A photo like this can only be taken when the earth is exactly aligned with the galaxies plane, and therefore is not very common. The galaxy actually bulges in the center, showing that a majority of the mass is centered there, holding the galaxy together.
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