Spitzer/SWIRE View of the Tadpole Galaxy

Spitzer_sig05-019b_1024

spitzer_sig05-019b October 27th, 2005

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/C. Lonsdale (IPAC/Caltech) and the SWIRE Team

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 present day, universe.

The Tadpole galaxy is the result of a recent galactic interaction in the local universe. Although these galactic mergers are rare in the universe's recent history, astronomers believe that they were much more common in the early universe. Thus, SWIRE team members will use this detailed image of the Tadpole galaxy to help understand the nature of the "faint red-orange specks" of the early universe.

The observed SWIRE fields were chosen on the basis of being "empty" or as free as possible from the obscuring dust, gas, and stars of our own Milky Way. Because Earth is located within the Milky Way galaxy, there is always a screen of Milky Way objects blocking our view of the rest of the universe. In some places, our view of the larger universe is less obscured than others and for the most part is considered "empty." These are prime observing spots for astronomers interested in studying objects beyond the Milky Way.

ELAIS-N1 is only one of six SWIRE survey fields. The full survey covers 49 square degrees of the sky, equivalent to the area covered by about 250 full moons.

The SWIRE image is a 3-channel color composite, where blue represents visible green light (light that would appear to be blue/green to the human eye), green captures 3.6 microns, and red represents emissions at 8 microns.

Provider: Spitzer Space Telescope

Image Source: http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/2379-sig05-019b-Spitzer-SWIRE-View-of-the-Tadpole-Galaxy

Curator: Spitzer Space Telescope, Pasadena, CA, USA

Image Use Policy: http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/info/18-Image-Use-Policy

Image Details

Image Type
Observation
Object Name
Tadpole Galaxy Arp 188 UGC 10214
Subject - Local Universe
Galaxy > Type > Interacting

Distance

Universescale3
425,000,000 light years
Spitzer_sig05-019b_128
 

Position Details

Position (ICRS)
RA = 16h 6m 9.2s
DEC = 55° 28’ 9.8”
Orientation
North is 44.1° CW
Field of View
5.6 x 5.6 arcminutes
Constellation
Draco

Color Mapping

  Telescope Spectral Band Wavelength
Blue - Optical (V-band) 550.0 nm
Green Spitzer (IRAC) Infrared (Near-IR) 3.6 µm
Red Spitzer (IRAC) Infrared (Mid-IR) 8.0 µm
Spectrum_base
Blue
Green
Red
Spitzer_sig05-019b_1280
×
ID
sig05-019b
Subject Category
C.5.1.7.  
Subject Name
Tadpole Galaxy, Arp 188, UGC 10214
Credits
NASA/JPL-Caltech/C. Lonsdale (IPAC/Caltech) and the SWIRE Team
Release Date
2005-10-27
Lightyears
425,000,000
Redshift
0.031358
Reference Url
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/2379-sig05-019b-Spitzer-SWIRE-View-of-the-Tadpole-Galaxy
Type
Observation
Image Quality
Good
Distance Notes
Distance from Quickfacts; redshift form NED 2008/11/11
Facility
-, Spitzer, Spitzer
Instrument
-, IRAC, IRAC
Color Assignment
Blue, Green, Red
Band
Optical, Infrared, Infrared
Bandpass
V-band, Near-IR, Mid-IR
Central Wavelength
550, 3600, 8000
Start Time
Integration Time
Dataset ID
Notes
Coordinate Frame
ICRS
Equinox
J2000
Reference Value
241.538422982, 55.4693978528
Reference Dimension
561, 561
Reference Pixel
472.68371582, 446.216424942
Scale
-0.00016676038359346, 0.00016676038359346
Rotation
-44.108980238983
Coordinate System Projection:
TAN
Quality
Full
FITS Header
Notes
Creator (Curator)
Spitzer Space Telescope
URL
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu
Name
Spitzer Space Telescope
Email
Telephone
Address
1200 E. California Blvd.
City
Pasadena
State/Province
CA
Postal Code
91125
Country
USA
Rights
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/info/18-Image-Use-Policy
Publisher
Spitzer Science Center
Publisher ID
spitzer
Resource ID
sig05-019b.tif
Metadata Date
2012-10-11
Metadata Version
1.1
×

 

Detailed color mapping information coming soon...

×
Universescalefull
425,000,000 light years

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