Galactic triple play

This photograph from 1986 shows the bright, central disk of the Milky Way Galaxy as seen from our perspective on Earth (left), plus two of the galaxies closest to us, the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds (from left to right, respectively). These so-called irregular dwarf galaxies glow at a distance of about 160,000 light-years and 200,000 light-years, with the Small Magellanic Cloud representing one of the farthest astronomical objects that is visible to the unaided eye.