The James Webb Space Telescope has peered through cosmic dust to reveal new details and a stunning image of a rare type of galaxy.
The space observatory’s latest image shows the Cartwheel galaxy, a ring galaxy located 500 million light-years away that formed when a large spiral galaxy and a small galaxy violently collided.
When galaxies collide, they can change in shape and structure. In the Cartwheel galaxy, which looks a bit like a wagon wheel, a colorful ring surrounds an even brighter inner ring, both of which expand away from the heart of the collision, as depicted in the Webb image.
NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI
This new image from the James Webb Space Telescope shows the Cartwheel Galaxy, the result of a high-speed collision that occurred about 440 million years ago, along with two neighboring galaxies.
Astronomers have gleaned new insights about individual stars and star formation within the chaotic galaxy, as well as the black hole at the galactic center, as a result of Webb’s capabilities.
The new image reveals more about how the galaxy has evolved over billions of years.
Among the hot dust in the bright inner ring, giant young clusters of stars are forming, the image shows.
Meanwhile, the outer ring has been expanding for 440 million years, and it’s where star formation and star death (in the form of supernova explosions) occur. As the ring expands, it collides with gas, triggering more star formation.
Two small companion galaxies also appear in the image.
NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI
This image from the James Webb Space Telescope shows the structure of the Cartwheel galaxy.
The Hubble Space Telescope and other observatories have studied the Cartwheel, but accumulations of dust have obscured the galaxy’s mysteries.
Webb is an infrared telescope, viewing the light that is invisible to the human eye, which is why it was able to capture new details other instruments could not.
The new image is a composite of data collected by Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera and Mid-Infrared Instrument and captures a moment in time as the Cartwheel continues to slowly transform.
The Webb telescope officially began scientific operations on July 12, the same day NASA released its first images, and more images are on the way in the coming weeks, according to the space agency.
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James Webb telescope shows it’s possible to seek alien life in distant planets’ atmospheres
NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI via AP
This image provided by NASA on Monday, July 11, 2022, shows galaxy cluster SMACS 0723, captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. The telescope is designed to peer back so far that scientists can get a glimpse of the dawn of the universe about 13.7 billion years ago and zoom in on closer cosmic objects, even our own solar system, with sharper focus.Â
NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI via AP
This image provided by NASA on Monday, July 11, 2022, shows galaxy cluster SMACS 0723, captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. The telescope is designed to peer back so far that scientists can get a glimpse of the dawn of the universe about 13.7 billion years ago and zoom in on closer cosmic objects, even our own solar system, with sharper focus.Â
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James Webb telescope shows it’s possible to seek alien life in distant planets’ atmospheres
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
This combo of images provided by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows a side-by-side comparison of observations of the Southern Ring Nebula in near-infrared light, at left, and mid-infrared light, at right, from the Webb Telescope.Â
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
This combo of images provided by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows a side-by-side comparison of observations of the Southern Ring Nebula in near-infrared light, at left, and mid-infrared light, at right, from the Webb Telescope.Â
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James Webb telescope shows it’s possible to seek alien life in distant planets’ atmospheres
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI via AP
This image released by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows the bright star at the center of NGC 3132 for the first time in near-infrared light.Â
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI via AP
This image released by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows the bright star at the center of NGC 3132 for the first time in near-infrared light.Â
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James Webb telescope shows it’s possible to seek alien life in distant planets’ atmospheres
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
This image provided by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows Stephan's Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies, as observed from the Webb Telescope. This mosaic was constructed from almost 1,000 separate image files, according to NASA.Â
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
This image provided by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows Stephan's Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies, as observed from the Webb Telescope. This mosaic was constructed from almost 1,000 separate image files, according to NASA.Â
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James Webb telescope shows it’s possible to seek alien life in distant planets’ atmospheres
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
This image provided by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows Stephan's Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies captured by the Webb Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI).Â
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
This image provided by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows Stephan's Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies captured by the Webb Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI).Â
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James Webb telescope shows it’s possible to seek alien life in distant planets’ atmospheres
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
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James Webb telescope shows it’s possible to seek alien life in distant planets’ atmospheres
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
This image released by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows 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 the James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals previously obscured areas of star birth, according to NASA.Â
NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI via AP
This image released by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, shows 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 the James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals previously obscured areas of star birth, according to NASA.Â
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James Webb telescope shows it’s possible to seek alien life in distant planets’ atmospheres
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI via AP
This image released by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, combined the capabilities of the James Webb Space 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 combined image reveals previously invisible areas of star birth.Â
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI via AP
This image released by NASA on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, combined the capabilities of the James Webb Space 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 combined image reveals previously invisible areas of star birth.Â
