Star Formation Region DR 6

Spitzer_ssc2004-18a1_1024

spitzer_ssc2004-18a1 October 28th, 2004

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/S.Carey (Caltech)

A "monster" lurking behind a blanket of cosmic dust is unveiled in this 2004 Halloween image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. Resembling a ghoul with two hollow eyes and a screaming mouth, this cloud of newborn stars was uncovered by Spitzer's heat-seeking infrared eyes.

This nebula, called "DR 6", resides in the plane of our Milky Way galaxy and is home to a cluster of about 10 massive newborn stars, ranging in size from 10 to 20 times the mass of our Sun. The nebular "eyes" and "mouth" were carved out by intense heat and winds, which shoot outward from the stars (located in the central bar or "nose"). The green material remaining in the eyes and mouth is comprised of gas, while the red regions and tendrils beyond make up the dusty cloud that originally gave birth to the young stars.

Within the nebula's central bar, a second generation of stars is in the process of forming. These stars, in turn, will sculpt their stellar nursery, and ultimately affect the birth of yet another generation of stars. Spitzer provides astronomers with an unprecedented combination of sensitivity and spatial resolution to study this cycle in detail.

DR 6 is located 3,900 light-years away in the constellation Cygnus. The distance from one end of its central bar to the other is the about 3.5 light-years, or about the same distance from our Sun to its nearest neighbor, Alpha Centauri.

This image composite was taken on Nov. 27, 2003, by Spitzer's infrared array camera. It is composed of images obtained at four wavelengths: 3.6 microns (blue), 4.5 microns (green), 5.8 microns (orange) and 8 microns (red).

Provider: Spitzer Space Telescope

Image Source: http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/1318-ssc2004-18a1-Star-Formation-Region-DR-6

Curator: Spitzer Space Telescope, Pasadena, CA, USA

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

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Image Details

Image Type
Observation
Object Name
DR 6
Subject - Milky Way
Nebula > Type > Star Formation

Distance

Universescale1
3,900 light years
Spitzer_ssc2004-18a1_128
 

Position Details

Position (ICRS)
RA = 20h 27m 12.5s
DEC = 39° 26’ 4.0”
Orientation
North is 30.7° CCW
Field of View
9.9 x 13.8 arcminutes
Constellation
Cygnus

Color Mapping

  Telescope Spectral Band Wavelength
Blue Spitzer (IRAC) Infrared (Near-IR) 3.6 µm
Green Spitzer (IRAC) Infrared (Near-IR) 4.5 µm
Orange Spitzer (IRAC) Infrared (Mid-IR) 5.8 µm
Red Spitzer (IRAC) Infrared (Mid-IR) 8.0 µm
Spectrum_base
Blue
Green
Orange
Red
Spitzer_ssc2004-18a1_1280
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ID
ssc2004-18a1
Subject Category
B.4.1.2.  
Subject Name
DR 6
Credits
NASA/JPL-Caltech/S.Carey (Caltech)
Release Date
2004-10-28
Lightyears
3,900
Redshift
Reference Url
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/1318-ssc2004-18a1-Star-Formation-Region-DR-6
Type
Observation
Image Quality
Good
Distance Notes
Distance from description
Facility
Spitzer, Spitzer, Spitzer, Spitzer
Instrument
IRAC, IRAC, IRAC, IRAC
Color Assignment
Blue, Green, Orange, Red
Band
Infrared, Infrared, Infrared, Infrared
Bandpass
Near-IR, Near-IR, Mid-IR, Mid-IR
Central Wavelength
3600, 4500, 5800, 8000
Start Time
Integration Time
Dataset ID
Notes
Coordinate Frame
ICRS
Equinox
J2000
Reference Value
306.80226793812142, 39.434448580587258
Reference Dimension
970.0, 1360.0
Reference Pixel
486, 681
Scale
-0.000169693, 0.000169693
Rotation
30.7
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
ssc2004-18a1.tif
Metadata Date
2012-10-11
Metadata Version
1.1
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Detailed color mapping information coming soon...

×
Universescalefull
3,900 light years

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