Hubble image archive
Gravitational Wave Source in NGC 4993
On August 17, 2017, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory detected gravitational waves from a neutron star collision. Within 12 hours, observatories had identified the source of the event within the galaxy NGC 4993, shown in this Hubble Space Telescope image, an...
- Date
- Jan 1, 2017
- Mission
- Hubble Space Telescope
- Archive ID
- hubblesite-images-2017-41-4077-image
On August 17, 2017, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory detected gravitational waves from a neutron star collision. Within 12 hours, observatories had identified the source of the event within the galaxy NGC 4993, shown in this Hubble Space Telescope image, and located an associated stellar flare called a kilonova. Hubble observed that flare of light fade over the course of 6 days, as shown in these observations taken on August 22, 26, and 28 (insets).
Credits
NASA and ESAAcknowledgment: A. Levan (U. Warwick), N. Tanvir (U. Leicester), and A. Fruchter and O. Fox (STScI)
Image Details
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | GRB170817A - NGC 4993 |
| Object Description | Binary Neutron Stars in an Elliptcal Galaxy |
| R.A. Position | 13 09 48.080 |
| Dec. Position | -23 22 53.20 |
| Constellation | Hydra |
| Distance | 130 million light-years (to NGC 4993) |
| Dimensions | Image is about 1.6 arcmin across, about 60,500 light-years at the distance of NGC 4993. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | Data were provided by the HST proposals (A. Bellini, P.I.), (A. Levan, P.I.), (N. Tanvir, P.I.) |
| Instrument | WFC3/UVIS, WFC3/IR |
| Exposure Dates | Main Image (April 28, and August 22, 2017), Inset Images (August 22-28, 2017) |
| Filters | WFC3/UVIS F606W, WFC3/IR F110W, F160W |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | This image is a composite of separate exposures made by the WFC3 instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope using two different cameras and filters isolating the light of specific elements or of specific broad wavelength ranges. The color arises by assigning different hues (colors), to each monochromatic image. In this case, the colors are: blue WFC3/UVIS F606W, green WFC3/IR F110W, orange/red: WFC3/IR F160W. |
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Source
Image and source material are credited to the official mission archive linked below.
View on NASA.gov