'Witch Head' Brews Baby Stars

Wise_wise2013-003_1024

wise_WISE2013-003 October 30th, 2013

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

A witch appears to be screaming out into space in this new image from NASA's Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE. The infrared portrait shows the Witch Head nebula, named after its resemblance to the profile of a wicked witch. Astronomers say the billowy clouds of the nebula, where baby stars are brewing, are being lit up by massive stars. Dust in the cloud is being hit with starlight, causing it to glow with infrared light, which was picked up by WISE's detectors.

The Witch Head nebula is estimated to be hundreds of light-years away in the Orion constellation, just off the famous hunter's knee.

WISE was recently "awakened" to hunt for asteroids in a program called NEOWISE. The reactivation came after the spacecraft was put into hibernation in 2011, when it completed two full scans of the sky, as planned.

Provider: Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer

Image Source: /image/wise/WISE2013-003

Curator: Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Berkeley, CA, USA

Image Use Policy: Public Domain

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  • Full Size Image (9163 x 9163)

Image Details Image Details

Image Type
Observation
Object Name
Witch Head Nebula • IC 2118
Subject - Milky Way
Nebula > Type > Star Formation

Distance Details Distance

Universescale1
1,000 light years
Wise_wise2013-003_128
 

Position Details Position Details

Position (ICRS)
RA = 5h 4m 55.4s
DEC = -7° 15’ 56.3”
Orientation
North is 180.0° CCW
Field of View
3.5 x 3.5 degrees
Constellation
Eridanus

Color Mapping Details Color Mapping

  Telescope Spectral Band Wavelength
Blue WISE Infrared (Near-IR) 3.4 µm
Cyan WISE Infrared (Near-IR) 4.6 µm
Green WISE Infrared (Mid-IR) 12.0 µm
Red WISE Infrared (Mid-IR) 22.0 µm
Spectrum_ir1
Blue
Cyan
Green
Red
Wise_wise2013-003_1280
×
ID
WISE2013-003
Subject Category
B.4.1.2  
Subject Name
Witch Head Nebula, IC 2118
Credits
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA
Release Date
2013-10-30
Lightyears
1,000
Redshift
1,000
Reference Url
/image/wise/WISE2013-003
Type
Observation
Image Quality
Good
Distance Notes
Facility
WISE, WISE, WISE, WISE
Instrument
Color Assignment
Blue, Cyan, Green, Red
Band
Infrared, Infrared, Infrared, Infrared
Bandpass
Near-IR, Near-IR, Mid-IR, Mid-IR
Central Wavelength
3400, 4600, 12000, 22000
Start Time
Integration Time
Dataset ID
Notes
Coordinate Frame
ICRS
Equinox
2000
Reference Value
76.231010, -7.265630
Reference Dimension
9163, 9163
Reference Pixel
4582, 4582
Scale
-3.81944439141100e-04, 3.81944439141100e-04
Rotation
180
Coordinate System Projection:
SIN
Quality
Full
FITS Header
Notes
Creator (Curator)
Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer
URL
http://wise.astro.ucla.edu
Name
Email
outreach@ssl.berkeley.edu
Telephone
Address
7 Gauss Way
City
Berkeley
State/Province
CA
Postal Code
94720
Country
USA
Rights
Public Domain
Publisher
Publisher ID
wise
Resource ID
Resource URL
/image/wise/WISE2013-003
Related Resources
Metadata Date
2018-01-11T02:56:48Z
Metadata Version
1.2
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Detailed color mapping information coming soon...

×
Universescalefull
1,000 light years

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