NASA’s Webb Rounds Out Image of Sombrero Galaxy’s Disk

After capturing an image of the long-lasting Sombrero galaxy at mid-infrared wavelengths in late 2024, NASA’s James Webb Area Telescope has now adopted up with an remark within the near-infrared. Within the latest picture, the Sombrero galaxy’s big bulge, the tightly packed group of stars on the galaxy’s heart, is illuminated, whereas the mud within the outer edges of the disk blocks some stellar gentle.

Finding out galaxies just like the Sombrero at different wavelengths, together with the near-infrared and mid-infrared with Webb, in addition to the visible with NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, helps astronomers perceive how this complicated system of stars, mud, and fuel fashioned and developed, together with the interaction of that materials.

When in comparison with Hubble’s seen gentle picture, the mud disk doesn’t look as pronounced within the new near-infrared picture from Webb’s NIRCam (Close to-Infrared Digicam) instrument. That’s as a result of the longer, redder wavelengths of infrared gentle emitted by stars slip previous mud extra simply, so much less of that stellar gentle is blocked. Within the mid-infrared picture, we truly see that mud glow.

The Sombrero galaxy is positioned about 30 million light-years away from Earth on the fringe of the Virgo galaxy cluster, and has a mass equal to about 800 billion Suns. This galaxy sits “edge on” to us, which means we see it from its facet.

Research have indicated that hiding behind the galaxy’s clean mud lane and calming glow is a turbulent past. Just a few oddities found through the years have hinted this galaxy was as soon as a part of a violent merger with a minimum of one different galaxy.

The Sombrero is house to roughly 2,000 globular clusters, or collections of a whole lot of 1000’s of outdated stars held collectively by gravity. Spectroscopic studies have proven the celebs inside these globular clusters are unexpectedly totally different from each other.

Stars that kind across the similar time from the identical materials ought to have related chemical ‘fingerprints’ – for instance, the identical quantities of parts like oxygen or neon. Nonetheless, this galaxy’s globular clusters present noticeable variation. A merger of various galaxies over billions of years would clarify this distinction.

One other piece of proof supporting this merger principle is the warped look of the galaxy’s inside disk.

Whereas our view is assessed as “edge on,” we’re truly seeing this almost edge on. Our view six levels off the galaxy’s equator means we don’t see it immediately from the facet, however somewhat bit from above. From this view, the inside disk seems tilted inward, like the start of a funnel, as an alternative of flat.

This video compares pictures of the Sombrero galaxy, often known as Messier 104 (M104). The primary picture exhibits seen gentle noticed by the Hubble Area Telescope’s Superior Digicam for Surveys. The second is in near-infrared gentle and exhibits NASA’s Webb Area Telescope’s take a look at the galaxy utilizing NIRCam (Close to-Infrared Instrument). The ultimate picture exhibits mid-infrared gentle noticed by Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument).
Credit score: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

The highly effective decision of Webb’s NIRCam additionally permits us to resolve particular person stars outdoors of, however not essentially on the similar distance as, the galaxy, a few of which seem crimson. These are known as crimson giants, that are cooler stars, however their massive floor space causes them to glow brightly on this picture. These crimson giants are also detected within the mid-infrared, whereas the smaller, bluer stars within the near-infrared “disappear” within the longer wavelengths.

Additionally within the NIRCam picture, galaxies of various shapes and colours are scattered all through the backdrop of house. The number of their colours offers astronomers with clues about their traits, reminiscent of their distance from Earth.

The James Webb Area Telescope is the world’s premier house science observatory. Webb is fixing mysteries in our photo voltaic system, wanting past to distant worlds round different stars, and probing the mysterious buildings and origins of our universe and our place in it. Webb is a global program led by NASA with its companions, ESA (European Area Company) and CSA (Canadian Area Company).

To be taught extra about Webb, go to:

https://science.nasa.gov/webb