Wednesday, July 26, 2023

Inbox Astronomy: Webb Snaps Highly Detailed Infrared Image of Actively Forming Stars

INBOX ASTRONOMY

Webb Snaps Highly Detailed Infrared Image of Actively Forming Stars

Release date: Wednesday, July 26, 2023 10:00:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Webb Snaps Highly Detailed Infrared Image of Actively Forming Stars



Forecast: There’s a 100% chance of recurring two-sided jets for a pair of stars that are actively gathering mass.

Like kittens, actively forming stars are balls of energy. But instead of being overtaken by the zoomies, stars emit energy in the form of jets, creating fantastic, textured scenes. That’s the case for two tightly orbiting stars, known as Herbig-Haro 46/47.

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captured the most detailed portrait of these stars to date. The pair of actively forming stars has sent out jets in two directions for thousands of years. Although Herbig-Haro 46/47 has been studied by many telescopes, both on the ground and in space, since the 1950s, Webb is the first to capture them in high-resolution near-infrared light. With Webb, we can now understand more of the stars’ activity – past and present – and peer through the dusty blue nebula, which appears black in visible-light images, that surrounds them. Over time, researchers will be able to glean new details about how stars form.



Find additional articles, images, and videos at WebbTelescope.org



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