Hubble image archive
Galactic Center Region in Infrared from Spitzer
The Spitzer Space Telescope's infrared-light observations provide a detailed and spectacular view of the galactic center region. The swirling core of our galaxy harbors hundreds of thousands of stars that cannot be seen in visible light. These stars heat the nearby gas and dust....
- Date
- Jan 1, 2009
- Mission
- Hubble Space Telescope
- Archive ID
- hubblesite-images-2009-28-2635-image
The Spitzer Space Telescope's infrared-light observations provide a detailed and spectacular view of the galactic center region. The swirling core of our galaxy harbors hundreds of thousands of stars that cannot be seen in visible light. These stars heat the nearby gas and dust. These dusty clouds glow in infrared light and reveal their often dramatic shapes. Some of these clouds harbor stellar nurseries that are forming new generations of stars. Like the downtown of a large city, the center of our galaxy is a crowded, active, and vibrant place.
Credits
NASA, JPL-Caltech, E. Churchwell (University of Wisconsin), SSC, and STScIImage Details
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | Galactic Center |
| Object Description | Center of the Milky Way Galaxy |
| R.A. Position | 17h 45m 36.0s |
| Dec. Position | -28° 55' 58.8" |
| Constellation | Sagittarius |
| Distance | 26,000 light-years (8 kiloparsecs) |
| Dimensions | The image of the galactic center is 32.5 arcminutes (246 light-years or 75.5 parsecs) wide. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | The Spitzer Space Telescope data were courtesy of NASA, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and S. Stolovy (Spitzer Science Center/California Institute of Technology). |
| Instrument | SST>IRAC |
| Exposure Dates | September 3, 2004, and September 15, 2005 |
| Filters | 3.6 microns, 4.5 microns, 5.8 microns, and 8.0 microns |
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Source
Image and source material are credited to the official mission archive linked below.
View on NASA.gov