NASA and the European Space Agency released a colorful new image of a star-forming region captured by the James Webb Space Telescope.
The picture of nebula N79, released on Tuesday, was captured with the telescope’s Mid-InfraRed Instrument and shows the complex region, which spans 1,630 light-years, according to the ESA.
It’s always darkest before the dawn.
— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) January 23, 2024
This image from the Webb telescope shows N79, a massive star-forming region. At mid-infrared wavelengths, Webb reveals glowing gas and dust deep within the clouds, as well as embedded baby stars: https://t.co/U3MQwO2kvK pic.twitter.com/eAU7L08i2A
“This particular image centres on one of the three giant molecular cloud complexes, dubbed N79 South (S1 for short). The distinct ‘starburst’ pattern surrounding this bright object is a series of diffraction spikes,” the ESA said in a release about the image.
The star-forming region is the HII region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, which is a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way galaxy, according to the space agency.
The ESA says the Webb telescope has allowed researchers to learn more about star formations in different regions to better understand space.
“Star-forming regions in our Milky Way galaxy are not producing stars at the same furious rate as N79, and have a different chemical composition. Webb is now providing astronomers the opportunity to compare and contrast observations of star formation in N79 with the telescope’s deep observations of distant galaxies in the early Universe,” the ESA said in a release.
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The James Webb Space Telescope was launched into space by NASA in December 2021, and both NASA and the ESA have published images from the space telescope since July 2022. The agencies have also touted the advanced capabilities and high-quality instruments on the telescope.
The Webb telescope has allowed scientists to better understand the complexity of the cosmos and its many unique features. In the more than two years since it was launched, there have been several breakthroughs made as scientists seek to understand the formation of the universe.
