NGC 6872 is a giant barred spiral galaxy. The galaxy has two elongated arms with a stellar diameter of over 522,000 light-years and an equal brightness diameter of over 717,000 light-years, making it the largest known spiral galaxy

This composite image  combines visible light images from the ESO’s Very Large Telescope with far-ultraviolet data from the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) and infrared data acquired by the Spitzer Space Telescope.

Image Credit: ESO / NASA