Astronomers have found unexpected rings and arcs of ultraviolet light around a selection of galaxies, four of which are shown here as viewed by NASA and the European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope.

This false-color composite image shows the Cartwheel galaxy as seen by NASA Galaxy Evolution Explorer, where the first ripple appears as an ultraviolet-bright blue outer ring.

The perfectly picturesque spiral galaxy known as Messier 81, or M81, looks sharp in this new composite from NASA Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes and NASA Galaxy Evolution Explorer.