The central galaxy in abell 2029: an old supergiant

A mosaic of images shows the extended structure of the cD galaxy that resides at the center of the rich cluster of galaxies Abell 2029. After correcting for the scattered light of nearby stars and galaxies, the faint halo of this giant can be traced out to a distance of more than 1 megaparsec, making it one of the largest and most luminous galaxies known. The smoothness of this halo suggests that it was formed early in the history of the cluster.