Tag

Star Formation

All articles tagged with #star formation

science13 days ago•38 min saved

The Milky Way’s Core Unveiled: A High-Resolution Map of Galactic Gas

Astronomers released the largest, most detailed image of the Milky Way's center, created with ALMA's 66 antennas to map cold molecular gas and dust at millimeter wavelengths. The mosaic reveals intricate gas filaments and molecular fingerprints, offering new insight into how stars form in the extreme environment around the galactic center, including a mysterious millimeter ultra-broad line object (MUBLO) detected only by ALMA. The project will be complemented by JWST observations to place our Galaxy in broader cosmic context and to inform theories of solar-system formation.

via WBUR|

#alma #interstellar-medium #milky-way

space15 days ago•11 min saved

Webb Exposes Messier 77’s Energetic Core

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has captured a striking new image of Messier 77, revealing a brilliantly bright galactic core powered by a supermassive black hole (about eight million solar masses) and a gas- and dust-rich disc fueling active star formation. Webb’s near-infrared view highlights a central bar and a luminous starburst ring, while the mid-infrared reveals cooler dust extending the view beyond visible light. The orange rays are diffraction spikes—optical artifacts from Webb’s hexagonal mirrors and support structure, not real features. Messier 77 also shows outer hydrogen filaments and a faint ring indicating extended star-forming activity, earning it the nickname Squid Galaxy. The image comes from observing program #3707, designed to study star formation in massive nearby galaxies and to build a rich dataset for future research.

via Interesting Engineering|

#active-galactic-nucleus #diffraction-spikes #james-webb-space-telescope

science19 days ago•33 min saved

Hubble captures glittering star nurseries in a nearby spiral galaxy

NASA’s Hubble image reveals the nearby spiral galaxy NGC 3137, about 53 million light-years away in the Antlia constellation, showcasing bright blue star clusters and red gas clouds around a massive central black hole—offering insight into stellar birth and the structure of a Local Group–like galaxy system.

via Yahoo|

#antlia #hubble-space-telescope #ngc-3137

science19 days ago•5 min saved

Massive star clusters escape birth clouds first, sparking early UV glow in galaxies

Webb and Hubble studied roughly 9,000 young star clusters in four nearby galaxies (M51, M83, NGC 4449, NGC 628) and found the most massive clusters clear their birth clouds and begin emitting ultraviolet light after about 5 million years, while less massive clusters emerge after 7–8 million years—offering new constraints on how stellar feedback drives galactic evolution and influences early planet formation.

via European Space Agency|

#galactic-evolution #planet-formation #science

science21 days ago•40 min saved

Milky Way Edge Revealed: Outer Disk Extends About 40,000 Light-Years

Researchers analyzing data from APOGEE-DR17, Gaia, and LAMOST-DR3 identify the Milky Way’s edge at roughly 40,000 light-years from the center, marking the final star-formation site beyond which only older stars remain. The outer disk shows a U-shaped stellar-age profile and breaks in the light profile, explained by star migration and bar-driven dynamics, while diffuse outer gas suggests little current star birth.

via Yahoo|

#apogee-dr17 #galactic-edge #milky-way

space26 days ago•5 min saved

Milky Way Edge Revealed: Star-Forming Boundary About 40,000 Light-Years Out

New analysis of 100k giant stars from APOGEE-DR17, LAMOST-DR3, and Gaia shows the Milky Way’s edge lies at 11.28–12.15 kpc (about 40,000 ly) from the center, defined as the end of the star-forming region; the observed U-shaped age trend (older inwards, younger toward the edge, then older beyond) reflects star migration under spiral arms and the bar, with three factors—outer Lindblad resonance, a galactic warp, and thin gas—likely causing the cut-off, classifying the Galaxy as Type-II.

via ScienceAlert|

#astronomy #galactic-dynamics #galaxy-structure

science27 days ago•38 min saved

Milky Way's star-forming disk ends at 40,000 light-years from the center, baffling astronomers

Astronomers mapped the Milky Way’s star-forming disk and find that active star formation ends at roughly 40,000 light-years from the center; the Sun sits well inside this boundary at about 26,000 ly. The stellar age distribution forms a U shape—young toward the center and older beyond the edge due to radial migration where stars born closer in travel outward along spiral arms. Simulations suggest a sharp drop in star-formation efficiency at 40,000 ly, potentially linked to the Galaxy’s bar or disk warp. The finding relies on Gaia data plus ground-based spectroscopy from LAMOST and APOGEE and is published in Astronomy & Astrophysics.

via Yahoo|

#gaia #galactic-disk #milky-way

space27 days ago•9 min saved

Milky Way's true edge defined: star formation stops about 40,000 light-years out

Astronomers mapped the Milky Way’s star-forming disk by analyzing stellar ages with Gaia data and ground-based surveys (LAMOST, APOGEE) and simulations. They found the outer edge of active star formation at about 35,000–40,000 light-years from the Galactic Center, marked by a U-shaped age pattern where ages dip closest to the center and rise beyond the edge. Beyond this boundary, most stars migrated outward rather than formed in situ, explaining why older stars populate the far outer disk. This defines the true edge of the Milky Way’s star-forming region and highlights inside-out growth and radial migration as key Galactic processes.

via ScienceDaily|

#galactic-evolution #milky-way #note-only-five-allowed-ensure-five-tags-listed

space27 days ago•73 min saved

Milky Way's star-forming disk ends 40,000 light-years from the center, baffling astronomers

Astronomers mapped ages for about 100,000 bright stars across the Milky Way’s disk and found that active star formation effectively ends at roughly 40,000 light-years from the Galactic center, creating a U-shaped age profile where younger stars lie inward and older ones outward. The outer stars likely reach those distances via radial migration along spiral waves rather than in situ formation. The boundary’s origin could relate to the Milky Way’s bar or disk warp, with Gaia data combined with ground-based spectroscopy (LAMOST and APOGEE) and simulations helping explain the phenomenon, though the exact mechanism remains under study.

via Space|

#gaia #galactic-disk #milky-way

space1 month ago•64 min saved

Hubble spots an expanding newborn jet in the Trifid Nebula on its 36th anniversary

Hubble re-imaged the Trifid Nebula (Messier 20) about 5,000 light-years away in Sagittarius for its 36th anniversary, revealing an active jet (HH-399) from a young star that has expanded since the 1997 image, offering clues to jet speeds and the energy young stars inject into their surroundings, alongside ultraviolet-lit gas and cleared dust around newly formed stars.

via Live Science|

#hh-399 #hubble-space-telescope #messier-20

space1 month ago•76 min saved

Hubble marks 36th anniversary with a vivid new view of the Trifid Nebula

To celebrate 36 years in space, the Hubble Space Telescope released a new high‑resolution, color image of the Trifid Nebula (Messier 20), focusing on a small region at the end of one of its dust lanes. The scene features a dense gas pillar with a recently formed star at its tip and a separate, leftward spike that is the Herbig–Haro jet HH 399 from a growing protostar. The image illustrates how intense radiation and stellar winds sculpt star‑forming regions, offering a detailed look at the ongoing process of star birth, and adds to Hubble’s long legacy of observations since its 1990 launch.

via Space|

#herbig-haro-399 #hubble-space-telescope #messier-20

space1 month ago•73 min saved

Hubble’s Sea-Slug View of the Trifid Nebula Marks Hubble’s 36th Anniversary

Hubble revisits the Trifid Nebula (Messier 20) about 5,000 light‑years away, capturing a sea‑slug–like view with a dust‑and‑gas “body” and a plasma‑jet “horn” from a young protostar—29 years after its first image, and as part of the telescope’s 36th anniversary with views enhanced by the 2009 camera upgrade.

via Space|

#astronomy #hubble-space-telescope #messier-20

science1 month ago•6 min saved

Hubble’s Latest Trifid Nebula Image Reveals Star-Birth Secrets

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope released a high-resolution image of the Trifid Nebula to mark its 36th anniversary, revealing detailed interactions of gas, dust, and young stars. The ultraviolet radiation from nearby massive stars carves cavities and triggers ongoing star formation, with protostars and their jets (Herbig-Haro objects) visible in unprecedented clarity. The image underscores Hubble’s extended legacy and complements data from Webb, with future missions like the Roman Space Telescope expanding our view of stellar nurseries.

via The Daily Galaxy|

#hubble-space-telescope #protostars #science

space1 month ago•6 min saved

Hubble’s 36th anniversary spotlights newborn stars in the Trifid Nebula

To celebrate its 36th year, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope re-imaged part of the Trifid Nebula (M20) about 5,000 light-years away, showing changes since 1997 and illustrating how newborn stars interact with their surroundings through protostellar jets like Herbig-Haro 399 and ultraviolet winds that carve a growing bubble—the Cosmic Sea Lemon. Beyond this image, Hubble’s longevity and improved instruments have fueled ongoing discoveries and collaborations with Gaia and JWST, underscoring its enduring role in expanding our understanding of the cosmos.

via ESA/Hubble|

#cosmic-sea-lemon #herbig-haro-399 #hubble-space-telescope

science-and-exploration1 month ago•5 min saved

Hubble celebrates 36 years with a refreshed look at the Trifid Nebula

On its 36th anniversary, the Hubble Space Telescope revisits the Trifid Nebula (Messier 20), a roughly 5,000-light-year-old star-forming region, with a newer wide-field camera to reveal changes on human timescales and features like protostellar jets and ultraviolet winds sculpting the gas—underscoring Hubble’s ongoing legacy of discovery and collaboration with Webb.

via European Space Agency|

#hubble-space-telescope #messier-20 #protostellar-jets