M 31

M31, known as NGC 224 or the Andromeda Galaxy, is a barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Andromeda, discovered in 1764. It's the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way at about 2.5 million light-years away, with a diameter of roughly 220,000 light-years and a central supermassive black hole.Apparent magnitude is 3.4. Distance from Earth is 2.5 million light-years.