Anatomy of Brown Dwarf's Atmosphere

Spitzer_ssc2013-01b_1024

spitzer_ssc2013-01b January 8th, 2013

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle (IPAC)

This artist's illustration shows the atmosphere of a brown dwarf called 2MASSJ22282889-431026, which was observed simultaneously by NASA's Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes. The results were unexpected, revealing offset layers of material as indicated in the diagram. For example, the large, bright patch in the outer layer has shifted to the right in the inner layer. The observations indicate this brown dwarf -- a ball of gas that "failed" to become a star -- is marked by wind-driven, planet-size clouds.

The observations were made using different wavelength of light: Hubble sees infrared light from deeper in the object, while Spitzer sees longer-wavelength infrared light from the outermost surface. Both telescopes watched the brown dwarf as it rotated every 1.4 hours, changing in brightness as brighter or darker patches turned into the visible hemisphere. At each observed wavelength, the timing of the changes in brightness was offset, or out of phase, indicating the shifting layers of material.

Provider: Spitzer Space Telescope

Image Source: http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5534-ssc2013-01b-Anatomy-of-Brown-Dwarf-s-Atmosphere

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
Artwork
Spitzer_ssc2013-01b_1280
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ID
ssc2013-01b
Subject Category
Subject Name
Credits
NASA/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle (IPAC)
Release Date
2013-01-08
Lightyears
Redshift
Reference Url
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5534-ssc2013-01b-Anatomy-of-Brown-Dwarf-s-Atmosphere
Type
Artwork
Image Quality
Good
Distance Notes
Facility
Instrument
Color Assignment
Band
Bandpass
Central Wavelength
Start Time
Integration Time
Dataset ID
Notes
Coordinate Frame
Equinox
Reference Value
Reference Dimension
Reference Pixel
Scale
Rotation
Coordinate System Projection:
Quality
FITS Header
Notes
Creator (Curator)
Spitzer Space Telescope
URL
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu
Name
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
ssc2013-01b.tif
Metadata Date
2017-03-13
Metadata Version
1.2
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