Dust in Hell
Astronomers using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope have detected dust grains mingling with blazing hot gas at temperatures of 10 million degrees Kelvin (about 10 million degrees Celsius, or 17 million degrees Fahrenheit) in an area surrounding the elliptical-shaped galaxy called NGC 5044.
NGC 4725
On August 25, 2003, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope blasted into the same dark skies it now better understands. In just two years, the observatory's infrared eyes have uncovered a hidden universe teeming with warm stellar embryos,chaotic planet-forming disks, and majestic galaxies, including the...
NGC 3351 (M95)
This image of galaxy NGC 3351, located approximately 30 million light-years away in the constellation Leo was captured by the Spitzer Infrared Nearby Galaxy Survey (SINGS) Legacy Project using the Spitzer Space Telescope's Infrared Array Camera (IRAC).
Dozens of newborn stars sprouting jets from their dusty cocoons have been spotted in images from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. In this view showing a portion of sky near Canis Major, infrared data from Spitzer are green and blue, while longer-wavelength infrared light from NASA's Wide-field...
Brown Dwarf Companion
This is an artist's concept of the star HD 3651 as it is orbited by a close-in Saturn-mass planetary companion and the distant brown dwarf companion discovered by Spitzer infrared photographs.
Astronomers watched an exoplanet called HD 80606b heat up and cool off during its sizzling-hot orbit around its star. The results are shown in this data plot from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Space Butterfly
What looks like a red butterfly in space is in reality a nursery for hundreds of baby stars, revealed in this infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. Officially named W40, the butterfly is a nebula - a giant cloud of gas and dust in space where new stars may form.
How can you tell if a star has a protoplanetary disk around it, when the disk is too small to image directly? Using the technique of spectroscopy, scientists can deduce the temperature and chemical composition of material around a star, even if they cannot see the disk itself.
This artist's concept illustrates the idea that rocky, terrestrial worlds like the inner planets in our Solar System may be plentiful, and diverse, in the Universe.
The 'Serpent' Star-Forming Cloud Spawns Stars
Within the swaddling dust of the Serpens Cloud Core, astronomers are studying one of the youngest collections of stars ever seen in our galaxy. This infrared image combines data from NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope with shorter-wavelength observations from the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS),...
Magnetic loops carry gas and dust above disks of planet-forming material circling stars, as shown in this artist's conception.
Galaxy Cluster MACS 1149, Seen by Spitzer
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope captured this image of the galaxy cluster MACS 1149. The observations took place during the telescope's warm mission phase, following the depletion of its liquid coolant in 2009.
Galaxy Merger Arp86
This image shows the merger of two galaxies, known as NGC 7752 (larger) and NGC 7753 (smaller), also collectively called Arp86. In these images, different colors correspond to different wavelengths of infrared light. Blue and green are wavelengths both strongly emitted by stars. Red is a...
A Slice of Orion
This image composite shows a part of the Orion constellation surveyed by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The region that makes up the shaft part of the "hockey stick" stretches 70 light-years beyond the Orion nebula. This particular area does not contain massive young stars like those of the...
Spitzer/SWIRE View of the Tadpole Galaxy
This spectacular infrared image of the "Tadpole" galaxy, taken by the Spitzer Wide-area Infrared Extragalactic (SWIRE) Legacy project, encapsulates one of the primary objectives of the Spitzer mission: to connect the evolution of galaxies from the distant, or early, universe to the nearby, or...
The Spacious Structure of Asteroid 2011 MD
Observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveal new information about the structure of 2011 MD, a small asteroid being considered by NASA for its proposed Asteroid Redirect Mission, or ARM. This illustration shows two possible structures for such an asteroid.
Cepheus C and Cepheus B (IRAC)
This image shows data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, from the IRAC instrument, with colors corresponding to wavelengths of 3.6, 4.5, 5.8 and 8.0 m.
Star Formation in the DR21 Region
Hidden behind a shroud of dust in the constellation Cygnus is a stellar nursery called DR21, which is giving birth to some of the most massive stars in our galaxy. This colorful image is a large-scale composite mosaic of this region assembled from data collected at infrared and visible wavelengths.
It's Raining Comets
This artist's conception illustrates a storm of comets around a star near our own, called Eta Corvi.
This series of images show three evolutionary phases of massive star formation, as pictured in infrared images from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Galactic Train Wreck
This image shows an example of colliding galaxies from a new photo atlas of galactic "train wrecks".
Infrared Coronet Cluster
The Corona Australis region (containing, at its heart, the Coronet cluster) is one of the nearest and most active regions of ongoing star formation. The Spitzer image shows young stars forming out of the surrounding dusty nebula.
A composite image of the spiral galaxy NGC 4258 showing X-ray emission observed with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory (blue) and infrared emission observed with NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope (red and green).
The Swirling Arms of the M100 Galaxy
The galaxy Messier 100, or M100, shows its swirling spiral in this infrared image from NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope. The arcing spiral arms of dust and gas that harbor starforming regions glow vividly when seen in the infrared.
W5 Star Formation Region
Generations of stars can be seen in this new infrared portrait of the star formation region W5 from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
NGC 2207 and IC 2163 Revealed by Spitzer
Something appears to be peering through a shiny red mask, in this infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The mysterious blue eyes are actually starlight from the cores of two merging galaxies, called NGC 2207 and IC 2163. The mask is the galaxies' dusty spiral arms.
This artist's rendering gives us a glimpse into a cosmic nursery as a star is born from the dark, swirling dust and gas of this cloud.
This image shows a portion of our sky, called the Botes field, in infrared light.
This artist's concept shows an exoplanet and debris disk orbiting a polluted white dwarf.
This artist's illustration depicts the exoplanet LHS 3844b, which is 1.3 times the mass of Earth and orbits an M dwarf star. The planet's surface may be covered mostly in dark lava rock, with no apparent atmosphere, according to observations by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Earth and Super-Earth
This artists concept contrasts our familiar Earth with the exceptionally strange planet known as 55 Cancri e. While it is only about twice the size of the Earth, NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has gathered surprising new details about this supersized and superheated world.
TRAPPIST-1 Statistics Table
This chart shows, on the top row, artist conceptions of the seven planets of TRAPPIST-1 with their orbital periods, distances from their star, radii and masses as compared to those of Earth. The bottom row shows data about Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars.
Artist's Conception of Spitzer Ejecting its Dust Cover
The Spitzer Space Telescope was launched with a dust cover protecting the telescope. This image shows the dust cover being ejected into space shortly after launch.
Hungry for a comet? Perhaps not, but astronomers using data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and the Deep Impact mission are putting together a recipe for comet "soup" -- the primordial stuff of planets, comets, and other bodies in our solar system.
Spitzer View of the Spiral Galaxy M51 ("Whirlpool Galaxy")
This visible light four-color composite of the spiral galaxy M51 comes from the Kitt Peak National Observatory 2.1m telescope and shows emissions from 0.4 to 0.7 microns, including the H-alpha nebular feature.
Partially Cloudy Skies on Kepler-7b
Kepler-7b which is 1.5 times the radius of Jupiter is the first exoplanet to have its clouds mapped.
Protostellar Envelope and Jet: L483
A young protostar and its signature outflow peeks out through a shroud of dust in this infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope View of M74
Astronomers using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope have created this infrared image of the spiral galaxy M74.
Orion in the Infrared
This image unveils the infrared view of the famous Orion nebula and its surrounding cloud, an industrious star-making region located near the hunter constellation's sword. The infrared picture is from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
3.6 micron image of the Spiral Galaxy Messier 81
The nearby spiral galaxy, Messier 81 (M81) is shown in this image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. Located in the northern constellation of Ursa Major (which also includes the Big Dipper), this galaxy is easily visible through binoculars or a small telescope.
Gamma-Ray Burst 050525a
Heat generated from a gamma-ray burst has been detected for the first time by a team of astronomers led by University of Notre Dame physicist Peter Garnavich.
Spitzer View of IRAS 2214+5948
This image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveals the complex life cycle of young stars, from their dust-shrouded beginnings to their stellar debuts. The stellar nursery was spotted in a cosmic cloud sitting 21,000 light-years away in the Cepheus constellation.
An Audience-Favorite Nebula
If astronomy had its own Academy Awards, then this part of the Milky Way would have been the Favorite Nebula pick for 2011. Competing against 12,263 other slices of the sky, this got more votes from the 35,000 volunteers searching for cosmic bubbles than any other location.
This diagram illustrates that mature planetary systems like our own might be more common around twin, or binary, stars that are either really close together, or really far apart.
Spitzer Spies Supernova Remnant HBH3
Thin, red veins of energized gas mark the location of the supernova remnant HBH3 in this image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Signs of Blasted Rock
This spectrum, or plot of infrared data, from NASA's Spitzer Space telescope reveals the presence of vaporized and melted rock, along with rubble, around a young, hot star.
The Smooth Spiral Galaxy NGC 2841
Located about 46 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Ursa Major, NGC 2841 is helping astronomers solve one of the oldest puzzles in astronomy: Why do galaxies look so smooth, with stars sprinkled evenly throughout?
The Language of Planetary Light
This graph of data from NASA's Spitzer Space telescope shows changes in the infrared light output of two star-planet systems (one above, one below) located hundreds of light-years away. The data were taken while the planets, called HD 209458b and TrES-1, disappeared behind their stars in what is...
Infrared Light Curve for Transiting Exoplanet HD 219134b
This plot captures the nearest known rocky exoplanet, dubbed HD 219134b, in the act of passing in front of its star. The data were obtained in infrared light using NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope.
Volcanic Activity on Super Earth 55 Cancri e
This artists impression of super-Earth 55 Cancri e shows a hot partially-molten surface of the planet before and after possible volcanic activity on the day side.
Spiral Galaxy M101 - Spitzer Space Telescope
Spitzer's view, taken in infrared light, reveals the galaxy's delicate dust lanes as yellow-green filaments.
Multispectral Triangulum Galaxy 3 Channel
This image is a blend of the Galaxy Evolution Explorer's M33 image and another taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. M33, one of our closest galactic neighbors, is about 2.9 million light-years away in the constellation Triangulum, part of what's known as our Local Group of galaxies.
Tempel 1's Secret Ingredients Revealed
This graph shows the two spectra acquired by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope before (middle) and after (bottom) it observed NASA's Deep Impact smash into comet Tempel 1. Above them is a past spectrum of comet Hale-Bopp, which illustrates the extra detail seen by Spitzer in Tempel 1.
Spitzer View of Andromeda Galaxy
Astronomers have new evidence that the Andromeda spiral galaxy was involved in a violent head-on collision with the neighboring dwarf galaxy Messier 32 (M32) more than 200 million years ago. Infrared photographs taken with NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope revealed a never-before-seen dust ring deep...
NASA's Great Observatories Examine the Galaxy Center
In celebration of the International Year of Astronomy 2009, NASA's Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- have produced a matched trio of images of the central region of our Milky Way galaxy.
An Unexpected Scattering of Light
This series of images from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows a dark mass of gas and dust, called a core, where new stars and planets will likely spring up.
Astronomers using NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope have greatly improved the cosmic distance ladder used to measure the size and age of the universe, symbolically rendered in this artists concept.
Dimming of FU Orionis (Spitzer)
The brightness of outbursting star FU Orionis has been slowly fading since its initial flare-up in 1936. Researchers found that it has dimmed by about 13 percent in short infrared wavelengths from 2004 to 2016.
Visible-light view of Messier 81
This image shows a visible-light view of the nearby galaxy Messier 81. Located in the northern constellation of Ursa Major (which also includes the Big Dipper), this galaxy is easily visible through binoculars or a small telescope.
Infrared View of Spitzer
Spitzer seen against the infrared sky. The band of light is the glowing dust emission from the Milky Way galaxy seen at 100 microns (as seen by the IRAS/COBE missions).
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