NGC 4567
The merging galaxy pair NGC 4568 and NGC 4567
This image from the Gemini North telescope in Hawai‘i reveals a pair of interacting spiral galaxies — NGC 4568 (bottom) and NGC 4567 (top) — as they begin to clash and merge. The galaxies will eventually form a single elliptical galaxy in around 500 million years.
Orion Nebula
Celestial Cloudscape in the Orion Nebula
This celestial cloudscape from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope captures the colourful region surrounding the Herbig-Haro object HH 505. Herbig-Haro objects are luminous regions surrounding newborn stars, and are formed when ionised jets of gas spewing from these newborn stars collide with...
Supernova
Supernova at redshift z = 0.51
The image shows a supernova at redshift z = 0.51 (corresponding to a distance of about 10,000 million light-years) is observed on five dates with the SUSI camera at the 3.6-m New Technology Telescope (NTT). The host galaxy is clearly visible and the supernova reaches its maximum brightness...
New Technology Telescope
Supernova at redshift z = 0.40
The image shows a supernova at redshift z = 0.40 (corresponding to a distance of about 6,000 million light-years) observed on five dates with the SUSI camera at the 3.6-m New Technology Telescope (NTT). The host galaxy is barely visible, most probably because it is a low surface brightness...
Star-Studded Skyfield
This star-studded image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the heart of the globular cluster NGC 6638 in the constellation Sagittarius. The star-strewn observation highlights the density of stars at the heart of globular clusters, which are stable, tightly bound clusters of tens of...
Andromeda Galaxy
The Andromeda Galaxy
This detailed image of the Andromeda Galaxy was taken at the National Science Foundation's 0.9-meter telescope on Kitt Peak with the NOAO Mosaic CCD camera. Located in the constellation of Andromeda, the Princess, the Andromeda Galaxy is a large spiral galaxy very similar to our own Galaxy, the...
Dusty disk around HD 34700 A
The dusty disk around HD 34700 A is part of a survey of 44 young massive stars to investigate planet formation in dusty, swirling disks — likely to become new solar systems. The image was taken with the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) instrument on the Gemini South telescope of the International...
HD 50138
Dusty disk around HD 50138
The dusty disk around HD 50138 is part of a survey of 44 young massive stars to investigate planet formation in dusty, swirling disks — likely to become new solar systems. The image was taken with the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) instrument on the Gemini South telescope of the International...
HD 169142
Dusty disk around HD 169142
The dusty disk around HD 169142 is part of a survey of 44 young massive stars to investigate planet formation in dusty, swirling disks — likely to become new solar systems. The image was taken with the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) instrument on the Gemini South telescope of the International...
MWC 614
Dusty disk around MWC 614
The dusty disk around MWC 614 is part of a survey of 44 young massive stars to investigate planet formation shows dusty, swirling disks — likely to become new solar systems. The image was taken with the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) instrument on the Gemini South telescope of the International...
MWC 789
Dusty disk around MWC 789
The dusty disk around MWC 789 is part of a survey of 44 young massive stars to investigate planet formation shows dusty, swirling disks — likely to become new solar systems. The image was taken with the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) instrument on the Gemini South telescope of the International...
GRB 151229A
Hidden Galaxy Home of GRB (Unannotated)
Unannotated image of the region of the sky surrounding a recently identified galaxy that was found to be the home of GRB 151229A, a short gamma-ray burst. Astronomers calculate that this burst, which lies in the direction of the constellation Capricornus, occurred approximately 9 billion years...
HD 145718
Dusty disk around HD 145718
The dusty disk around HD 145718 is part of a survey of 44 young massive stars to investigate planet formation shows dusty, swirling disks — likely to become new solar systems. The image was taken with the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) instrument on the Gemini South telescope of the International...
M83
NGC 5236 (M83), SINGG Survey
Gas-rich galaxies display a wide range of structures and properties, but one thing they all seem to have are some newly formed stars. Images from the Survey for Ionization in Neutral Gas Galaxies (SINGG), an NOAO Survey Program (obtained with the CTIO 1.5m telescope), are designed to highlight...
Messier 61
The golden era to study stellar births
This week, we feature an image of the spiral galaxy NGC 4303, also known as Messier 61, which is one of the largest galactic members of the Virgo Cluster. Being a so-called starburst galaxy, it has an unusually high amount of stars being born, and has been used by astronomers as a laboratory to...
NGC 4303
NGC 4303 as seen with MUSE on ESO’s VLT at several wavelengths of light
This image, taken by the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), shows the nearby galaxy NGC 4303. NGC 4303 is a spiral galaxy, with a bar of stars and gas at its centre, located approximately 55 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Virgo....
Cartwheel Galaxy
Cartwheel Galaxy (NIRCam and MIRI Composite Image)
This image of the Cartwheel and its companion galaxies is a composite from Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), which reveals details that are difficult to see in the individual images alone. This galaxy formed as the result of a high-speed collision that...
Cartwheel Galaxy
Cartwheel Galaxy (MIRI)
This image from Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) shows a group of galaxies, including a large distorted ring-shaped galaxy known as the Cartwheel. The Cartwheel Galaxy, located 500 million light-years away in the Sculptor constellation, is composed of a bright inner ring and an active...
RCW 120
A Crimson Nursery
RCW 120, also known as Sharpless 2-3, is an emission nebula and star-forming region located in the constellation Scorpius, about 4300 light-years away from Earth. The glowing nebula was captured here by the SMARTS 0.9-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program...
Follow the LEDA
This luminescent image features multiple galaxies, perhaps most noticeably LEDA 58109, the lone galaxy in the upper right. LEDA 58109 is flanked by two further galactic objects to its lower left — an active galactic nucleus (AGN) called SDSS J162558.14+435746.4 that partially obscures the...
The ultra-faint dwarf galaxy Pegasus V
A unique ultra-faint dwarf galaxy has been discovered in the outer fringes of the Andromeda Galaxy thanks to the sharp eyes of an amateur astronomer examining archival data from the US Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo...
Terzan 2
Portrait of a Globular Cluster
The globular cluster Terzan 2 in the constellation Scorpio features in this observation from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. Globular clusters are stable, tightly gravitationally bound clusters of tens of thousands to millions of stars found in a wide variety of galaxies. The intense...
Arp 282
A Cosmic Draw
It is now widely accepted amongst astronomers that an important aspect of how galaxies evolve is the way they interact with one another. Galaxies can merge, collide, or brush past one another — each of which has a significant impact on their shapes and structures. As common as these...
Lens Flair
This intriguing observation from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows a gravitationally lensed galaxy with the long-winded identification SGAS J143845+145407. Gravitational lensing has resulted in a mirror image of the galaxy at the centre of this image, creating a captivating centrepiece....
Small Magellanic Cloud
Dust and Gas in the Large Magellanic Cloud
The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is a satellite of the Milky Way, containing about 30 billion stars. Seen here in a far-infrared and radio view, the LMCs cool and warm dust are shown in green and blue, respectively, with hydrogen gas in red.
Andromeda Galaxy
Dust and Gas in the Andromeda Galaxy
The Andromeda galaxy, or M31, is shown here in far-infrared and radio wavelengths of light. Some of the hydrogen gas (red) that traces the edge of Andromedas disc was pulled in from intergalactic space, and some was torn away from galaxies that merged with Andromeda far in the past. This...
Small Magellanic Cloud
Dust and Gas in the Small Magellanic Cloud
The Small Magellanic Cloud is a satellite of the Milky Way, containing about 3 billion stars. This far-infrared and radio view of it shows the cool (green) and warm (blue) dust, as well as the hydrogen gas (red).
Triangulum Galaxy
Dust and Gas in the Triangulum Galaxy
This image of the Triangulum galaxy, or M33, includes data from the ESA (European Space Agency) Herschel mission, supplemented with data from ESAs retired Planck observatory and two retired NASA missions: the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) and Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). This...
Tarantula Nebula
The rich region around the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud
Glowing brightly about 160 000 light-years away, the Tarantula Nebula is the most spectacular feature of the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy to our Milky Way. This image from VLT Survey Telescope at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile shows the region and its rich surroundings in...
30 Doradus
Composite infrared and radio image of 30 Doradus
This composite image shows the star-forming region 30 Doradus, also known as the Tarantula Nebula. The background image, taken in the infrared, is itself a composite: it was captured by the HAWK-I instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for...
NGC 1515
NGC 1515
Intermediate barred spiral galaxy NGC 1515 composed of data taken with the Dark Energy Camera on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF’s NOIRLab, as part of the Dark Energy Survey, a project that mapped millions of galaxies....
Stephan's Quintet
Stephan's Quintet (NIRCam + MIRI Compass Image)
Image of Stephan's Quintet, HCG 92, captured by Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), with compass arrows, scale bar, and color key for reference. The north and east compass arrows show the orientation of the image on the sky. Note that the relationship...
SMACS 0723-73
Webb's First Deep Field (MIRI and NIRCam Side-by-Side Compass Image)
Image of galaxy cluster SMACS 0723, affectionately known as Webb’s First Deep Field, captured by Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), with compass arrows and color key for reference. The north and east compass arrows show the orientation of the image on the...
SMACS 0723-73
Webb's First Deep Field: Galaxies in the Very Early Universe (NIRSpec MSA Emission Spectra)
NASA’s Webb Telescope has yet another discovery machine aboard – the Near-Infrared Spectrograph’s (NIRSpec’s) microshutter array. This instrument has more than 248,000 tiny doors that can be individually opened to gather spectra (light) of up to approximately 150 individual objects...
SMACS 0723-73
Webb's First Deep Field: Galaxy Composition (NIRSpec Emission Spectrum)
This galaxy emitted its light 13.1 billion years ago. It was captured by Webb’s microshutter array, part of its Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec). This instrument is so sensitive that it can observe the light of individual galaxies that existed in the very early universe. This will prove...
SMACS 0723-73
Webb’s First Deep Field (MIRI and NIRCam Images Side by Side)
Galaxy cluster SMACS 0723 is a technicolor landscape when viewed in mid-infrared light by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. Compared to Webb’s near-infrared image at right, the galaxies and stars are awash in new colors. Start by comparing the largest bright blue star. At right, it has very...
SMACS 0723-73
Webb's First Deep Field: Two Arcs Are the Same Galaxy (NIRISS Emission Spectra)
Want to go on a galactic treasure hunt? Data known as spectra from NASA’s Webb Telescope make it easy to find – and match up – cosmic prizes! At far left is a near-infrared image of galaxy cluster SMACS 0723. A group of massive galaxies below and to the right of the bright central star have...
Stephan's Quintet
Stephan's Quintet (MIRI Spectra)
Stephan’s Quintet is a visual grouping of five galaxies located in the constellation Pegasus. Together, they are also known as the Hickson Compact Group 92 (HCG 92). Although called a “quintet,” only four of the galaxies are truly close together and caught up in a cosmic dance. The fifth and...
Stephan's Quintet
Stephan's Quintet (MIRI Compass Image)
Image of Stephan's Quintet, HCG 92, captured by Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), with compass arrows, scale bar, and color key for reference. The north and east compass arrows show the orientation of the image on the sky. Note that the relationship between north and east on the sky (as...
NGC 3132
Southern Ring Nebula (NIRCam Image Compass)
The bright star at the center of NGC 3132, while prominent when viewed by NASA’s Webb Telescope in near-infrared light, plays a supporting role in sculpting the surrounding nebula. A second star, barely visible at lower left along one of the bright star’s diffraction spikes, is the nebula’s...
WASP-96 b
Exoplanet WASP-96 b (NIRISS Transit Light Curve)
A light curve from Webb’s Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph (NIRISS) shows the change in brightness of light from the WASP-96 star system over time as the planet transits the star. A transit occurs when an orbiting planet moves between the star and the telescope, blocking some of...
Stephan's Quintet
Stephan's Quintet (MIRI Image)
With its powerful, mid-infrared vision, the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) shows never-before-seen details of Stephan’s Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies. MIRI pierced through dust-enshrouded regions to reveal huge shock waves and tidal tails, gas and stars stripped from the outer...
NGC 3132
Southern Ring Nebula (MIRI Image)
NASA’s Webb Telescope has revealed the cloak of dust around the second star, shown at left in red, at the center of the Southern Ring Nebula for the first time. It is a hot, dense white dwarf star. As it transformed into a white dwarf, the star periodically ejected mass – the shells of...
NGC 3132
Southern Ring Nebula (MIRI Image)
NASA’s Webb Telescope has revealed the cloak of dust around the second star, shown at left in red, at the center of the Southern Ring Nebula for the first time. It is a hot, dense white dwarf star. As it transformed into a white dwarf, the star periodically ejected mass – the shells of...
NGC 3132
Southern Ring Nebula (NIRCam Image)
The bright star at the center of NGC 3132, while prominent when viewed by NASA’s Webb Telescope in near-infrared light, plays a supporting role in sculpting the surrounding nebula. A second star, barely visible at lower left along one of the bright star’s diffraction spikes, is the nebula’s...
NGC 3324
NIRCam Compass Image of the “Cosmic Cliffs” in Carina
What looks much like craggy mountains on a moonlit evening is actually the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals previously obscured...
NGC 3324
Combined NIRCam and MIRI Compass Image of the “Cosmic Cliffs” in Carina
Astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope combined the capabilities of the telescope’s two cameras to create a never-before-seen view of a star-forming region in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), this...
NGC 3324
Combined NIRCam and MIRI Image of the “Cosmic Cliffs” in Carina
Astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope combined the capabilities of the telescope’s two cameras to create a never-before-seen view of a star-forming region in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), this...
HD141569
Dust Disk Around 5-Million-Year-Old Star HD141569
A 2003 Hubble Space Telescope image of HD141569.
Stephan's Quintet
Stephan's Quintet (NIRCam + MIRI Image)
An enormous mosaic of Stephan’s Quintet is the largest image to date from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, covering about one-fifth of the Moon’s diameter. It contains over 150 million pixels and is constructed from almost 1,000 separate image files. The visual grouping of five galaxies was...
SMACS 0723-73
Webb's First Deep Field (NIRCam Image)
Thousands of galaxies flood this near-infrared image of galaxy cluster SMACS 0723. High-resolution imaging from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope combined with a natural effect known as gravitational lensing made this finely detailed image possible. First, focus on the galaxies responsible for...
NGC 3324
NIRCam Image of the “Cosmic Cliffs” in Carina
What looks much like craggy mountains on a moonlit evening is actually the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals previously obscured...
WASP-96 b
NASA’s Webb Reveals Steamy Atmosphere of Distant Planet in Exquisite Detail
Webb’s enormous mirror and precise instruments join forces to capture the most detailed spectrum of an exoplanet atmosphere to date.
NGC 3132
Southern Ring Nebula (NIRCam and MIRI Images Side by Side)
This side-by-side comparison shows observations of the Southern Ring Nebula in near-infrared light, at left, and mid-infrared light, at right, from NASA’s Webb Telescope. This scene was created by a white dwarf star – the remains of a star like our Sun after it shed its outer layers and...
IC 396A
IC1396, The Elephant Trunk Nebula
This image of the Elephant Trunk Nebula was taken with the Mosaic camera on the WIYN 0.9-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Arizona. The Elephant Trunk is a dense, elongated cloud of gas inside a bright cluster of stars known as IC 1396. The trunk conceals many young...
HD 166191
Planetesimal Collision Around Star HD 166191 (Illustration)
PGC 17532
Hubble Spies a Galactic Gem
This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope observation has captured the galaxy CGCG 396-2, an unusual multi-armed galaxy merger which lies around 520 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Orion. This observation is a gem from the Galaxy Zoo project, a citizen science project in which...
NGC 1300
Multi-Wavelength View of NGC 1300
This image of spiral galaxy NGC 1300 combines observations to map stellar populations and gas. Radio light observed by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array is represented in yellow and highlight the clouds of cold molecular gas that provide the raw material from which stars form....
TOI 560.01
Mini Neptune Losing its Atmosphere
Illustration of the mini-Neptune TOI 560.01, located 103 light-years away in the Hydra constellation. The planet, which orbits closely to its star, is losing its puffy atmosphere and may ultimately transform into a super-Earth.
Spire in Eagle Nebula
A Sample of Images from Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys
Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) forever changed our view of the universe. Two decades into its epic mission, ACS continues to deliver ground-breaking science and stunning images. ACS has taken over 125,000 pictures and spawned numerous discoveries. Here is a portfolio of some of the...
