For long time this was one of the most enigmatic galaxies, large elliptical galaxy with an unusual dark dust lane, strong source of radio, infrared and X and gamma rays. Actually it is the brightest radio galaxy on the sky. Now it is believed to be a result of a recent (in a cosmic sense, off course) merger of an elliptical galaxy with a spiral galaxy. The turmoil being result of the merger, funnels large amounts of matter into the central black hole, which is responsible for the various emissions.

The galaxy is believed to be a relatively nearby at only 11 million light-years. The supermassive black hole is believed to power an AGN (Active Galactic Nuclei), although we do not have a clear view into the center due to the dust lanes - remnants of the smaller spiral galaxy. Optically, Centaurus A is the fifth brightest in the sky and is on the threshold of naked eye visibility (magnitude 6.8). The galaxy and the central dust line are visible in even small binoculars.