Astronomy Picture of the Day . ... The Swirling Center of NGC 4261 . ... The above picture by the Hubble Space Telescope of the center of the nearby galaxy NGC 4261 tells us one dramatic tale. Here gas and dust are seen swirling near this elliptical galaxy's center into what is almost certainly a massive black hole. GL 229B: An Elusive Brown Dwarf? ... A leading candidate is a type of dim, low mass star called a "brown dwarf" star. ... Do other stars have planets too? ... Releasing Compton . ...