Hubble image archive
Galaxy NGC 4214: A Star-Formation Laboratory
The dwarf galaxy NGC 4214 is ablaze with young stars and gas clouds. Located around 10 million light-years away in the constellation of Canes Venatici (The Hunting Dogs), the galaxy's close proximity, combined with the wide variety of evolutionary stages among the stars, make it...
- Date
- Jan 1, 2011
- Mission
- Hubble Space Telescope
- Archive ID
- hubblesite-images-2011-14-2844-image
The dwarf galaxy NGC 4214 is ablaze with young stars and gas clouds. Located around 10 million light-years away in the constellation of Canes Venatici (The Hunting Dogs), the galaxy's close proximity, combined with the wide variety of evolutionary stages among the stars, make it an ideal laboratory to research the triggers of star formation and evolution.
Intricate patterns of glowing hydrogen formed during the star-birthing process, cavities blown clear of gas by stellar winds, and bright stellar clusters of NGC 4214 can be seen in this optical and near-infrared image.
Observations of this dwarf galaxy have also revealed clusters of much older red supergiant stars. Additional older stars can be seen dotted all across the galaxy. The variety of stars at different stages in their evolution indicates that the recent and ongoing starburst periods are not the first, and the galaxy's abundant supply of hydrogen means that star formation will continue into the future.
This color image was taken using the Wide Field Camera 3 in December 2009.
Credits
Credit: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration;Acknowledgment: R. O'Connell (University of Virginia) and the WFC3 Scientific Oversight Committee
Image Details
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | NGC 4214 |
| Object Description | Dwarf Galaxy with Bright Star-Forming Regions |
| R.A. Position | 12h 15m 39.16s |
| Dec. Position | 36° 19' 36.8" |
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
| Distance | The distance to NGC 4214 is 10 million light-years (3.1 Mpc). |
| Dimensions | The image is 1.3 arcminutes (3,700 light-years or 1,100 parsecs) wide. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | The image was created from Hubble data from proposal : R. O'Connell (University of Virginia), B. Balick (University of Washington), H. Bond (STScI), D. Calzetti (University of Massachusetts), M. Carollo (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich), M. Disney (University of Wales, College of Cardiff), M. Dopita (Australian National University), J. Frogel (Ohio State University Research Foundation), D. Hall (University of Hawaii), J. Holtzman (New Mexico State University), P. McCarthy (Carnegie Institution of Washington), F. Paresce (European Southern Observatory, Germany), A. Saha (NOAO/AURA), J. Silk (University of Oxford), A. Walker (NOAO/CTIO), B. Whitmore (STScI), R. Windhorst (Arizona State University), and E. Young (University of Arizona).The science team comprises: R. O'Connell (University of Virginia), M. Dopita (Australian National University), C. Kaleida (Arizona State University), and B. Whitmore (STScI). |
| Instrument | HST>WFC3/UVIS |
| Exposure Dates | December 22-25, 2009, Exposure Time: 3.6 hours |
| Filters | F225W (UV), F336W (U), F438W (B), F487N (H-beta), F502N ([O III]), F547M (y), F657N (H-alpha+[N II]), and F814W (I) |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | This image is a composite of separate exposures acquired by the WFC3 instrument on HST. Several filters were used to sample broad and narrow wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Blue: F225W (UV) + F336W (U) + F438W (B) + F487N (H-beta)Green: F502N ([O III]) + F547M (y), Red: F657N (H-alpha+[N II]) + F814W (I) |
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Source
Image and source material are credited to the official mission archive linked below.
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