Cool as a Stellar Cucumber
Sig10 007

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/P. Eisenhardt (JPL)

Observation • June 24th, 2010 • sig10-007

sig10-007

This image shows what astronomers think is one of the coldest brown dwarfs discovered so far (red dot in middle of frame). The object, called SDWFS J143524.44+335334.6, is one of 14 such brown dwarfs found by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope using infrared light. Follow-up observations are required to nail down this "failed" star's temperature, but rough estimates put this particular object at about 700 Kelvin (800 degrees Fahrenheit).

In this image, infrared light with a wavelength of 3.6 microns is color-coded blue; 4.5-micron light is red. The brown dwarf shows up prominently in red because methane is absorbing the 3.6-micron, or blue-coded, light.

About the Object

Name
SDWFS J143524.44+335334.6
Type
Star > Type > Brown Dwarf

Color Mapping

Band Wavelength Telescope
Infrared 3.6 µm Spitzer IRAC
Infrared 4.5 µm Spitzer IRAC

Astrometrics

Position (J2000)
RA =14h 35m 24.3s
Dec = 33° 53' 35.7"
Field of View
2.0 x 2.0 arcminutes
Orientation
North is up