'Hypnotizing swirls': NASA releases mesmerizing new images of the Phantom Galaxy

Space officials have released new images of the Phantom Galaxy some 32 million light-years away from Earth taken by the James Webb Space Telescope and the Hubble Telescope.

The galaxy is in the constellation Pisces and lies almost face-to-Earth, according to the European Space Agency (ESA), which collaborates with NASA on both telescopes.

Also known as Messier 74, ESA reported, the Phantom Galaxy is composed of about 100 billion stars, ESA reported.

"The hypnotizing swirls of the Phantom Galaxy are magnificent in any light!" NASA wrote in a social media post. "With two space telescopes' powers combined, we can get a more complete view of the universe."

With its two well-defined spiral arms, it falls under a class known as a "grand design spiral" meaning its spiral arms are prominent and well-defined, unlike the patchy and ragged structure seen in some spiral galaxies, according to ESA.

The Webb telescope detected "delicate filaments of gas and dust" in the galaxy's spiral arms, ESA reported. The "crystal clear" images, released Tuesday, also provide a better look at the nuclear star cluster at the galaxy's center, unclouded by gas.

Cell phone dead zones: SpaceX, T-Mobile race to put an end to cell phone dead zones with help from outer space

NASA released the first images from the $10 billion Webb telescope in July.

The first images from the telescope – launched Dec. 25, 2021 – went viral when they were released to the public. The scientific marvel, a joint project involving NASA, the Canadian Space Agency and the European Space Agency, has traveled 1 million miles through space.

The newest planet to the galaxy?: NASA astronomers say they may have found it.

Natalie Neysa Alund covers trending news for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NASA releases mesmerizing new images of the Phantom Galaxy, M-74