The Milky Way’s surface brightness is low, making it difficult to see and requires a clear, dark sky to do so. However, Webb’s sharp lens captured a clear image of the galaxy’s features. Remarkable new images of the Milky Way taken by Webb show the power of Hubble. The Phantom Galaxy, officially known as Messier 74, is a type of spiral galaxy known as the ‘Great Design Spiral’. This means it has well-defined helical arms, and they end clearly off-center in the newly released photos. These spiral arms are detected by blue and pink bursts, which are star-forming regions. A faint blue glow of stars shines at the heart of the galaxy.
The galaxy is in Pisces, which can be seen with NASA on both the Hubble Telescope and the James Webb Telescope.
Stunning new images produced by the Hubble Telescope and the James Webb Telescope showcase the Phantom Galaxy, 32 million light-years from Earth in the Solar System! This means that the images were created using data from both the Hubble Telescope and the James Webb Telescope. According to the European Space Agency, it has succeeded in finding ‘delicate filaments of gas and dust’ in the spiral arms of the galaxy. The images also provide a clear look at the nuclear star cluster at the center of the galaxy, which is not trapped by gas.
Webb’s infrared vision reveals dense clusters of stars near the galaxy’s core and the gas and dust within. The European Space Agency noted that the Webb Telescope also used its mid-infrared instrument to probe the Phantom Galaxy as part of a project to understand the early stages of star formation. Webb excels at observing infrared wavelengths of light, with Hubble having particularly sharp vision at ultraviolet and visible wavelengths, allowing it to look for regions visible in phantom galaxy images to reveal particularly bright regions of star formation.
Combining data from both telescopes allowed scientists to gain a deeper understanding of the Phantom Galaxy and create stunning images of the cosmos! NASA released the first high-resolution images of the web in July! Larger than Hubble, the telescope is capable of observing very distant star worlds, allowing scientists to learn about the early formation of stars. Hubble orbits the Earth, but the Webb orbits the Sun almost a million miles from Earth!
Combining data from both telescopes has allowed scientists to gain a deeper understanding of the galaxy and study the universe by obtaining stunning images. Now NASA has multiple, wider and more beautiful information about Galaxy Messier 74! There is understanding! This Hubble and visuals demonstrate the power to observe at different wavelengths. Hubble’s optical vision highlights older stars near the center and younger, bluer stars in the spiral arms. Hubble takes a look at the ‘Hunting Dog Galaxy’, a stunning cosmic spectacle in the constellation Canes Venatisi, aka the Hound. Called NBC 4242, this galaxy is about 30 million light-years away! It offers a view of the star cluster at the center of the galaxy, unobstructed by gas. Web telescopes can pass through gas and dust, which can appear opaque to the human eye! NASA’s mission to deepen the study of astronomy and make new discoveries continues to advance!