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Thousands of years ago, a star in our galaxy violently exploded, creating a glowing supernova remnant called Cassiopeia A. This wreckage has intrigued scientists for decades.
Now, here’s a new image Captured by the James Webb Space Telescope Astronomers say they have revealed the closest and most detailed view of the inside of an exploding star. Analyzing the images could help researchers better understand the processes that cause these large-scale incendiary events.
The space observatory also allowed astronomers to glimpse mysterious features that did not appear in images taken of the wreckage using telescopes such as Hubble, Chandra, and Spitzer, as well as Webb’s other instruments.
The new image was shared by first lady Dr. Jill Biden on Monday as she debuted the first-ever digital image. white house advent calendarThis is a work in which Mr. Webb captures Cassiopeia A, which shines like a Christmas ornament, from a new perspective.
“Never before have we observed an exploded star like this,” astronomer Dan Milisavljevic, assistant professor of physics and astronomy at Purdue University, said in a statement. “Supernovae are a major driver of cosmological evolution. There are many things that depend on our understanding of supernovae, such as their energy, their chemical abundance, etc.” This is the closest observation.”
A whirlpool of gas and dust is all that remains of a star that exploded into a supernova 10,000 years ago. Cassiopeia A is located 11,000 light years away in her constellation Cassiopeia.a light yearsequivalent to 5.88 trillion miles (9.46 trillion kilometers), the distance that a ray of light travels in one year.
Light from Cassiopeia A first reached Earth about 340 years ago. As the youngest known supernova remnant in our galaxy, this object has been studied by numerous ground-based and space-based telescopes. The wreckage stretches approximately 10 light-years across, or 60 trillion miles (96.6 trillion kilometers).
Insights from Cas A, also known as remnants, allow scientists to learn more about a star’s life cycle.
Astronomers used Webb’s near-infrared camera, called NIRCam, to observe the supernova remnant at different wavelengths of light than those used in previous observations. This image shows unprecedented details of the interaction between the expanding shell of material produced by a supernova as it collides with gas ejected from the star before it explodes.
But the image looks perfectly This is different from the one taken by Mr. Webb in April. It uses the telescope’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI). Each image highlights certain features that are not visible in other images.
Webb observes the universe at infrared wavelengths, which are invisible to the human eye. When scientists process Webb’s data, they convert the light captured by the telescope into a spectrum of colors that humans can see.
The new NIRCam image is dominated by orange and pale pink flashes within the supernova remnant’s inner shell. The colors correspond to gaseous clumps of elements emitted by the star, such as oxygen, argon, neon, and sulfur. Dust and molecules are mixed in the gas. Eventually, all these components combine to form new stars and planets.
By studying the debris, scientists can reconstruct what happened during the supernova explosion.
“NIRCam’s resolution allows us to see how the dying star was completely shattered during its explosion, leaving behind filaments that resemble tiny glass shards,” Milisavljevic said. “After all these years of studying Cas A, it’s really exciting to now know its details and provide us with transformative insight into how this star exploded. It’s unbelievable.”
Comparing the NIRCam image with the MIRI image taken in April, the new perspective appears to have less color. The bright orange and red swirls in the April image appear more smoky to NIRCam’s eye, showing where shock waves from the supernova hit surrounding material.
The white light in NIRCam images is due to synchrotron radiation, which is produced when charged particles accelerate and move around magnetic field lines.
NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI
Astronomers used the Webb Telescope’s near-infrared camera (left) and mid-infrared instrument (right) to examine previously unseen details of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A.
A key feature missing from NIRCam’s view is the MIRI image’s “green monster,” or ring of green light at the center of the debris, which has puzzled and challenged astronomers.
But near-infrared images reveal new details, showing a circular hole covered in white and purple, indicating charged particles from the debris forming the gas ejected by the star before it exploded.
Another new feature of the NIRCam image is a blob with the nickname Baby Cass A seen in the lower right corner. It appears to be a descendant of a larger supernova remnant and is located 170 light-years behind Cassiopeia A.
Baby Cas A is actually a feature called a light echo, where the supernova’s light interacts with the dust and causes it to heat up. The dust continues to glow as it cools over time.
“This is amazing,” said Milisavljevic, who led the project team that contributed to the new image. “We have some completely new capabilities that will change the way we think about the life cycle of stars.”