In December 2022, less than six months after commencing science operations, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope revealed something never seen before: numerous red objects that appear small on the sky, which scientists soon called “little red dots” (LRDs). Though these dots are quite abundant, researchers are perplexed by their nature, the reason for their unique … Read more
Radio data from February, April, and May 2024 reveals what appear to be jets of ionized gas, or plasma, extending from either side of the black hole, with a total size of about half a light-year. Astronomers have long puzzled over why only a fraction of monster black holes produce powerful plasma jets, and these … Read more
This is a James Webb Space Telescope image of NGC 346, a massive star cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy that is one of the Milky Way’s nearest neighbors. Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Olivia C. Jones (UK ATC), Guido De Marchi (ESTEC), Margaret Meixner (USRA) Source link
The simulations used dots called tracer particles to traverse a molecular cloud and travel along with the material. As the particles travel, they record the density of the part of the cloud they encounter, building up a history of how pockets of density change over time. The researchers, who also included Liubin Pan from Sun … Read more
“Twin telescopes aboard each spacecraft will both transmit and receive infrared laser beams to track their companions, and NASA is supplying all six of them to the LISA mission,” said Ryan DeRosa, a researcher at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The prototype, called the Engineering Development Unit Telescope, will guide us as … Read more
The collision isn’t as bad as it sounds. Although there was star formation occurring before, collisions between galaxies can compress gas, improving the conditions needed for more stars to form. On the other hand, as Webb reveals, collisions also disperse a lot of gas, potentially depriving new stars of the material they need to form. … Read more
Hubble , Hubble View: The same region of space in side-by-side images. The left image is labeled “Hubble” and the galaxies shown have an overall yellow tone and haze. The image on the right is labeled “Webb.” In the center of that image, several images of an elongated red galaxy for a shape like the … Read more
This image shows a small portion of the field observed by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) for the Cosmic Evolution Early Release Science (CEERS) survey. The full image appears below. Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, S. Finkelstein (University of Texas) Source link
The BOAT, formally known as GRB 221009A, erupted Oct. 9, 2022, and promptly saturated most of the gamma-ray detectors in orbit, including those on Fermi. This prevented them from measuring the most intense part of the blast. Reconstructed observations, coupled with statistical arguments, suggest the BOAT, if part of the same population as previously detected … Read more
Hubble , Hubbles view of a frame split down the middle: Hubble’s visible light image at left, and Webb’s near-infrared image at right. Both show the Egg at left and the Penguin at right. In Hubble’s view, the Penguin is highly detailed, with a bright blue beak, body, and tail that is covered in an … Read more