Spectrum of GRB 990510 afterglow
The object of study is the remnant of a mysterious cosmic explosion far out in space, first detected as a gigantic outburst of gamma rays on May 10. Gamma-Ray Bursters (GRBs) are brief flashes of very energetic radiation - they represent by far the most powerful type of explosion known in the...
Afterglow of GRB 990510
This wide-field photo was obtained with the Wide-Field Imager (WFI) at the MPG/ESO 2.2-m telescope at La Silla on May 11, 1999, at 08:42 UT, under inferior observing conditions (seeing = 1.9 arcsec). The exposure time was 450 sec in a B(lue) filter. The optical image of the afterglow of GRB...
GRB 990510 sky region
The object of study is the remnant of a mysterious cosmic explosion far out in space, first detected as a gigantic outburst of gamma rays on May 10. Gamma-Ray Bursters (GRBs) are brief flashes of very energetic radiation — they represent by far the most powerful type of explosion known in the...
GRB 990510
The object of study is the remnant of a mysterious cosmic explosion far out in space, first detected as a gigantic outburst of gamma rays on May 10. Gamma-Ray Bursters (GRBs) are brief flashes of very energetic radiation — they represent by far the most powerful type of explosion known in the...
Galaxy pair NGC 5090 and NGC 5091
A pair of galaxies NGC 5090 - 5091 in Centaurus is shown in this image. They are located at about the same distance as ESO 269-57 and may belong to the same cluster of galaxies. This is an interacting elliptical-spiral system with some evidence of tidal disruption of NGC 5091 (to the left;...
Afterglow of GRB 990510
This is a false-colour composite of the area around the optical image of the afterglow of GRB 990510, based on three near-infrared exposures with the SOFI multi-mode instrument at the 3.6-m ESO New Technology Telescope (NTT) at La Silla, obtained on May 10, 1999, between 23:15 and 23:45 UT. The...
Galaxy with warped dust lane
Image showing a sky field in the southern constellation Hydra (The Water-snake) that includes the peculiar spiral galaxy ESO 510-13 . It resembles the famous "Sombrero" galaxy, but its equatorial dust plane is pronouncedly warped. The velocity is 3300 km/sec, the distance is about 170 million...
Edge-on galaxy with dust lane
This is a colour composite (BVR) of a sky field near the border between the southern constellations Carina (The Ship's Keel) and Volans (The Flying Fish). It contains a spiral galaxy, ESO 60-24 that is seen nearly edge-on. This galaxy has a strong equatorial dust band that hides the light from...
B68, the black cloud
This photograph shows an unusual sky field in the Milky Way band. It is centred on one of the classical, dark globules, known as Barnard 68 (B68) after the American astronomer, Edward E. Barnard (1857 - 1923), who included it in a list of such objects, published in 1919. It appears as a...
Spiral galaxy ESO 269-57
ESO 269-57 is a spectacular spiral galaxy of symmetrical shape in the southern constellation Centaurus and belongs to a well-known cluster of galaxies seen in this direction. The galaxy received this designation when it was catalogued during the first ESO Survey of the Southern Sky in the...
Detail of star-forming region RCW 108 in Ara
RCW 108 is a molecular cloud that is in the process of being destroyed by intense ultraviolet radiation from heavy and hot stars in the nearby stellar cluster NGC 6193, seen to the left in the photos. A series of images were obtained with the Wide Field Imager (WFI) of areas in the Milky Way...
Interacting galaxies NGC 5090
This is a close-up view of the double galaxy NGC 5090 (right) and NGC 5091 (left), in the southern constellation Centaurus. The first is a typical S0 galaxy with a bright diffuse centre, surrounded by a fainter envelope of stars (not resolved in this picture). However, some of the starlike...
Spiral galaxy ESO 269-57
This photo shows the central region of spiral galaxy ESO 269-57, located in the southern constellation Centaurus at a distance of about 150 million light-years. Many galaxies are seen in this direction at about the same distance, forming a loose cluster; there are also some fainter, more...
Detail of field near spiral galaxy NGC 4945
This image is an enlargement of part of the same area of a sky field around the spiral galaxy NGC 4945 with a faint spiral galaxy showing the individual pixels. It covers 214 x 210 pixels and measures about 50 x 50 arcsec 2 in the sky. The area is only 1/1500 of the full field; this...
Messier 68
This photo was obtained with VLT KUEYEN on April 4, 1999. It is reproduced from an excellent 60-second R(ed)-band exposure of the innermost region of a globular cluster, Messier 68 (NGC 4590), in the southern constellation Hydra (The Water-Snake). The distance to this 8-mag cluster is about...
Spiral galaxy IC 4248
Somewhat further out in space, and right on the border between the southern constellations Hydra and Centaurus lies this knotty spiral galaxy, IC 4248 ; the distance is about 210 million light-years. The photo is a composite, based on three exposures (Blue - 600 sec; Yellow-Green - 300 sec;...
Field near spiral galaxy NGC 4945
This image is an enlargement at full resolution of a smaller region (about 1/67 by area) of a sky field around the spiral galaxy NGC 4945 . It is assembled from five 15-minute R(ed)-narrowband (shown in red), four 5-minute B(lue)-band (shown in green), and five 1000-second U(ltraviolet)-band...
Spiral galaxy NGC 4945
This photograph shows a sky field around the spiral galaxy NGC 4945 . It is assembled from five 15-minute R(ed)-narrowband (shown in red), four 5-minute B(lue)-band (shown in green), and five 1000-second U(ltraviolet)-band (shown in blue) exposures, obtained in January 1999 during the Science...
Spiral galaxy NGC 2997 I-Band-0.25 arcsec
A reproduction of the sharpest image obtained so far with the VLT UT1 with image quality 0.25 arcsec FWHM. 5 min exposure in I-band.
Spiral galaxy NGC 2997
This is a three-colour composite of the spiral galaxy NGC 2997 in the southern constellation Antlia (The Air Pump), obtained with the VLT UT1 and FORS1 in the morning of March 5, 1999. It is based on three exposures in V (green; 3 min; image quality 0.35 arcsec), R (red; 3 min; 0.34 arcsec) and...
Detail of spiral galaxy NGC 4945
This image is an enlargement at full resolution of a smaller region (about 1/7 by area) of a sky field around the spiral galaxy NGC 4945 . It is assembled from five 15-minute R(ed)-narrowband (shown in red), four 5-minute B(lue)-band (shown in green), and five 1000-second U(ltraviolet)-band...
Celestial scribbled notes
This colour-composite image was obtained by FORS1 on ANTU. It displays a sky area near the Chamaeleon I complex of bright nebulae and hot stars in the constellation of the same name, close to the southern celestial pole.This picture was taken a few days before the Paranal Inauguration and the...
2-D Spectrum of distant galaxy with Lyman-alpha emission
The image shows the two-dimensional spectrum of a high-redshift galaxy in the Hubble Deep Field South, as obtained with FORS1 at the VLT UT1. The image is a combination of 5 exposures with a total exposure time of 3 hours and has been sky-subtracted. The bright, vertical feature visible to the...
Barred galaxy NGC 1365
This is a true-colour image of the major part of NGC 1365, combined from three exposures with the FORS1 multi-mode instrument at VLT UT1, in the B (blue), V (green) and R (red) optical bands. The exposure times were 360, 180 and 140 seconds, respectively. The image quality is about 0.8 arcsec....
The birth of a Supernova remnant
This image displays a "spectral image" of SN1987A, the supernova that exploded 1987 in the Large Magellanic Cloud. It was obtained using the medium resolution spectroscopic mode of ISAAC with a 2 arcsec wide slit and the grating centred close to the HeI emission line at 1.083 µm (1083 nm). The...
Cluster of galaxies-1ESO657-55 (V-band)
Photograph showing a (false-colour) image of the galaxy cluster 1ES 0657-558 prepared from data taken in the V (green) band filter. The arcs and arclets in this cluster are particularly well visible in this image. The total exposure time was 600 seconds. North is up and East is left.
Spectrum of quasar 0046-282 at z=3.83
This chart shows the spectrum of Q0046-282, obtained with FORS1 at VLT UT1. The redshift z = 3.83 has been deduced from the measured wavelengths of the indicated lines of multiple ionized elements. The redshift z of this quasar is larger than 3. The wavelength of the emitted light is...
Spectrum of quasar 0103-294 at z=3.11
This chart shows a spectrum of the distant quasar Q0103-294, obtained with FORS1 at VLT UT1. The redshift z = 3.11 was deduced from the measured wavelengths of the indicated lines of multiple ionized elements, including oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur and carbon, and ionized helium. The spectrum was...
Spectrum of stars in NGC 6822 and the Milky Way galaxy
This chart displays a FORS1 spectrum of a blue supergiant in NGC 6822 (in the middle), as compared with those of supergiant stars (upper and lower) of similar atmospheric temperature in the Milky Way Galaxy. The observations were carried out by the FORS Commissioning Team on October 1, 1998,...
Stars and Nebulae in dwarf galaxy NGC 6822
This image is a reproduction of a narrow-band image of the central region of NGC 6822. This image was taken with a filter centred on the H-alpha spectral line of atomic hydrogen. It was obtained by the FORS1 Commissioning Team on October 2, 1998, in the FORS high-resolution imaging mode. The...
Centre of galaxy cluster MS1008.1-1224
True-colour image of the centre of the cluster of galaxies, MS1008.1-1224, combined from exposures with the FORS1 multi-mode instrument at VLT UT1, in the four optical bands, B (blue; exposure time 4950 sec; image quality 0.60 - 0.85 arcsec), V (green; 5400 sec; 0.50 - 0.75 arcsec), R (red;...
Dwarf galaxy Antlia
True-colour image of the dwarf galaxy Antlia combined from three exposures with the FORS1 multi-mode instrument at VLT UT1, in the B (blue), V (green) and R (red) optical bands. Many background galaxies are seen in the field. The total exposure times were 2400 sec, 2400 sec and 5400 sec,...
Distant galaxy EIS 47 (z=2.8)
True-colour picture of the distant galaxy EIS 47 in the "Hubble Deep Field South" sky field. The area measures 32 x 32 arcsec 2. It is the result of a combination of exposures in seven different wavebands from the ultraviolet to the infrared spectral region (U, B, V, R, I, J, H and K),...
Cluster of galaxies-1ESO657-55
Colour composite image of the galaxy cluster 1ES 0657-558, based on data taken in the B (blue; exposure 900 sec), V (green; 600 sec), R (red; 500 sec) and I (near-infrared; 600 sec) filters with FORS1 in the standard observing mode at the VLT UT1. A few of the brighter stars in the field...
MOS observations of distant galaxies
The left half of the image shows a true-colour rendering of an area of the Hubble Deep Field South measuring 2.25 x 2.5 arcmin 2. It is the result of a combination of exposures in seven different wavebands from the ultraviolet to the infrared spectral region (U, B, V, R, I, J, H and K),...
NGC 1365 central region
This is an enlargement of an image obtained by FORS1 in the light of H-alpha emission of ionized hydrogen, and here processed to show the central region of NGC1365 in great detail. The star-forming regions in this area show up as knots. The nucleus itself is very bright. An analysis has shown...
Star-forming region RCW 108 in Ara
RCW 108 is a molecular cloud that is in the process of being destroyed by intense ultraviolet radiation from heavy and hot stars in the nearby stellar cluster NGC 6193, seen to the left in the photo. A series of images were obtained with the Wide Field Imager (WFI) of areas in the Milky Way...
Stellar cluster NGC 1850 in the LMC
Colour a composite of three individual exposures, taken with FORS1 at the VLT UT1 on 3 February 1999. They were obtained through B (blue), V (green), and H-alpha (red) filters, and each of them was bias-subtracted and flat-fielded before combination. The field-of-view is 6.8 x 6.8 arcmin 2,...
NGC 1365-R
This view of the inner area of NGC 1365 was obtained through a red (R) optical filter with the VLT Test Camera (TC), mounted at one of the Nasmyth foci of VLT UT1. Dark dust clouds that obscure the light from objects behind them are seen along the bar and spiral arms. The gravitational action...
Galaxy cluster MS1008.1-1224
True-colour image of the cluster of galaxies, MS1008.1-1224, combined from exposures with the FORS1 multi-mode instrument at VLT UT1, in the four optical bands, B (blue; exposure time 4950 sec; image quality 0.60 - 0.85 arcsec), V (green; 5400 sec; 0.50 - 0.75 arcsec), R (red; 5400 sec; 0.45 -...
(V-I) colour index in NGC 1232
This "(V-I) colour-index image" was produced in the same way as eso9920k. It is based on two other exposures, taken on the same date, through a visual-green filter (V) and a near-infrared-red filter (I), respectively. The exposure time was 3 min for both. The field size and orientation is the...
(UV-B) colour index in NGC 1232
This is a computer processed "(U-B) colour-index image" of NGC 1232. This technique allows to show the "difference" between images of the galaxy, as seen in different wavebands. Since different types of objects have different brightness in different colours, this method is very useful to locate...
Spectrum of arc in cluster 1ESO657-558 (z=3.23)
This chart displays the spectrum of the most prominent gravitational arc in the galaxy cluster 1ES 0657-558, as obtained at VLT UT1 with the FORS1 instrument in December 1998. The total exposure time was 1.5 hours. It shows absorption lines of hydrogen (Lyman-alpha and Lyman-beta) as well as...
NGC 1365 - H-alpha
This photo was obtained by FORS1 at VLT UT1 through a narrow optical filter that isolates light emitted by hydrogen in the red H-alpha spectral line. It shows predominantly star-forming regions and other emission nebulae, most of which are located in the bar and along the spiral arms. The...
Globular Cluster NGC 6712
The globular cluster NGC 6712 and its surroundings. The image to the left shows the five fields that were extensively observed with the VLT Test Camera on 23 August 1998, within the VLT UT1 Science Verification Programme. The reproduction is based on 15-min CCD exposures through an optical...
NGC 1365 central region in infrared light
As seen in this composite image, based on exposures in two infrared-wavebands with the ISAAC multi-mode instrument, the nucleus is also very bright in infrared light. Moreover, this infrared view penetrates further into the obscuring dust to reveal several intriguing, red objects. The reddest...
Distant galaxy EIS 107 (z=3.92)
This photograph shows a true-colour image of the galaxy EIS 107 in the "AXAF Deep Field". The sky area measures 32 x 32 arcsec 2. It is a combination of U, B, V, R and I-band images, taken with the NTT during the EIS survey; the exposure times were 4.7, 1.8, 1.5, 1.5 and 3.5 hours, respectively.
Detail of spiral galaxy NGC 253
This photo shows a sky field around the Spiral Galaxy NGC 253 (Type Sc) seen nearly edge-on. It is located in the southern constellation Sculptor at a distance of about 8 million light-years. The image is the sum of five 5-min exposures through a blue (B-band) optical filtre. They were slightly...
East of Sinus Iridum
A series of short exposures through a near-infrared filtre was obtained of the waning Moon at sunrise on January 12 (at about 10 hrs UT), i.e. about 5 days before New Moon (24.3 days "old"). It displays a view of the plains near the Moon''''s north-east rim, just eastwards of Sinus Iridum ...
Mare Humorum
Series of short exposures through a near-infrared filtre was obtained of the waning Moon at sunrise on January 12 (at about 10 hrs UT), i.e. about 5 days before New Moon (24.3 days "old"). This image displays the Mare Humorum area in the south-east quadrant with the crater Gassendi ...
Spiral galaxy NGC 253
This photo shows a sky field around the Spiral Galaxy NGC 253 (Type Sc) seen nearly edge-on. It is located in the southern constellation Sculptor at a distance of about 8 million light-years. The image is the sum of five 5-min exposures through a blue (B-band) optical filtre. They were slightly...
Supernova at redshift z = 0.40
The image shows a supernova at redshift z = 0.40 (corresponding to a distance of about 6,000 million light-years) observed on five dates with the SUSI camera at the 3.6-m New Technology Telescope (NTT). The host galaxy is barely visible, most probably because it is a low surface brightness...
Supernova at redshift z = 0.51
The image shows a supernova at redshift z = 0.51 (corresponding to a distance of about 10,000 million light-years) is observed on five dates with the SUSI camera at the 3.6-m New Technology Telescope (NTT). The host galaxy is clearly visible and the supernova reaches its maximum brightness...
FORS Deep Field near Q0103-260
During the commissioning of FORS1, "deep fields" were observed in order to estimate the limiting magnitudes of the new instrument. Fields were selected which do not contain bright stars that might reduce the image quality due to scattered light. This FORS "deep field" hosts the quasar...
Very distant galaxy cluster EIS0046-2930
The image is a colour composite that shows the cluster EIS0046-2930. The image has been produced by combining the V (green-yellow), R (red) and I (Near-IR) exposures with the Test Camera obtained during the VLT-UT1 Science Verification. The yellow-orange galaxies are the cluster members and the...
Distant radio galaxy MRC0316-257
The image is a Ks (2.16µm) image, centred on the distant radio galaxy MRC0316-257 (redshift z = 3.14). It was obtained primarily to locate other distant galaxies for future spectroscopic observations with ISAAC.
The waning moon
A series of short exposures through a near-infrared filtre was obtained of the waning Moon at sunrise on January 12 (at about 10 hrs UT), i.e. about 5 days before New Moon (24.3 days "old"). As can be seen in the image, the edge of the full field-of-view is about the size of the diameter of...
Galaxy cluster Abell 370
This is a composite colour image of the Abell 370 cluster of galaxies. The light of a very distant object is deformed by the foreground cluster. Abell 370, at the center of the photo, contains a large number of galaxies — most of them are ellipticals. The two brightest red galaxies slightly...
Herbig-Haro object HH212
The image shows a long-slit (2 arcmin) spectrum in the 2 - 2.5µm spectral region of the Herbig Haro object HH212 . The spectral resolution is about 500. It is believed that a protostar - that is invisible even at infrared wavelengths - is responsible for the two pulsed jets seen in this...
Starforming galaxy at redshift 0.62
This image is an infrared spectrum showing the Hydrogen-alpha (0.6563µm) emission line (indicated with an arrow), shifted to 1.06µm in a star-forming galaxy at redshift z = 0.62, discovered in the CFRS survey. The total integration time with ISAAC was only 1 hour.
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