http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/resource_list/0-Image-Gallery http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/spitzer_icon.png?1274224175 This graphic illuminates the process by which astronomers using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope have for the first time detected the light from a super Earth planet. Artwork http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5151-ssc2012-07d-Measuring-Infrared-Brightness ssc2012-07d Tue, 08 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000 NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope was able to detect a super Earth's direct light for the first time using its sensitive heat-seeking infrared vision. Super Earths are more massive than Earth but lighter than gas giants like Neptune. Artwork http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5152-ssc2012-07c-How-to-See-a-Super-Earth ssc2012-07c Tue, 08 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000 Super Earths are exotic planets unlike any in our solar system. They are more massive than Earth yet lighter than gas giants like Neptune, and they can be made of gas, rock or a combination of both. Artwork http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5148-ssc2012-07b-First-of-Its-Kind-Glimpse-at-a-Super-Earth ssc2012-07b Tue, 08 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000 This plot of data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveals the light from a "super Earth" called 55 Cancri e. The planet is the smallest yet, beyond our solar system, to reveal its direct light. Chart http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5145-ssc2012-07a-Magician-of-a-Planet-Disappears-to-Reveal-Itself ssc2012-07a Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 +0000 New observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveal the Sombrero galaxy is not simply a regular flat disk galaxy of stars as previously believed, but a more round elliptical galaxy with a flat disk tucked inside. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5138-ssc2012-06b-Sombrero-Galaxy-Not-So-Flat-After-All ssc2012-06b Tue, 24 Apr 2012 00:00:00 +0000 The infrared vision of NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has revealed that the Sombrero galaxy -- named after its appearance in visible light to a wide-brimmed hat -- is in fact two galaxies in one. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5135-ssc2012-06a-The-Sombrero-Galaxy-s-Split-Personality ssc2012-06a Tue, 24 Apr 2012 00:00:00 +0000 A massive star-forming region located about 160,000 light years away. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/5130-sig12-004-A-New-View-of-the-Tarantula-Nebula sig12-004 Tue, 17 Apr 2012 00:00:00 +0000 A huge team of volunteers from the general public has poured over observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and discovered more than 5,000 "bubbles" in the disk of our Milky Way galaxy. Young, hot stars blow these shells out into surrounding gas and dust, highlighting areas of brand new star formation. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4938-sig12-002-Finding-Bubbles-in-the-Milky-Way sig12-002 Wed, 07 Mar 2012 00:00:00 +0000 If astronomy had its own Academy Awards, then this part of the Milky Way would have been the Favorite Nebula pick for 2011. Competing against 12,263 other slices of the sky, this got more votes from the 35,000 volunteers searching for cosmic bubbles than any other location. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4940-sig12-003-An-Audience-Favorite-Nebula sig12-003 Wed, 07 Mar 2012 00:00:00 +0000 This new view of the Orion nebula highlights fledgling stars hidden in the gas and clouds. It shows infrared observations taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and the European Space Agency's Herschel mission, in which NASA plays an important role. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4932-ssc2012-04a-Orion-s-Rainbow-of-Infrared-Light ssc2012-04a Wed, 29 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000 NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has detected the solid form of buckyballs in space for the first time. To form a solid particle, the buckyballs must stack together like oranges in a crate, as illustrated in this playful artist's concept. Artwork http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4926-ssc2012-03b-Stacking-Buckyballs-in-Space ssc2012-03b Wed, 22 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000 NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has detected the solid form of buckyballs in space for the first time. To form a solid particle, the buckyballs must stack together, as illustrated in this artist's concept showing the very beginnings of the process. Artwork http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4923-ssc2012-03a-Building-a-Buckyball-Particle-in-Space ssc2012-03a Wed, 22 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000 Vital clues about the devastating ends to the lives of massive stars can be found by studying the aftermath of their explosions. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4918-sig12-001-Remnant-of-an-Explosion-With-a-Powerful-Kick- sig12-001 Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000 Small Magellanic Cloud galaxy in infrared light, is one of the biggest satellite galaxies of our home galaxy, though it is still considered a dwarf galaxy compared to the big spiral of our Milky Way. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4867-ssc2012-01b-A-Dwarf-Galaxy-s-Star-Bar-and-Dusty-Wing ssc2012-01b Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000 In this new action-packed view of the Cygnus X star-forming region from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, stars can be seen at different stages of development. Collage http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4879-ssc2012-02b-Goings-On-Around-Star-forming-Towns ssc2012-02b Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000 Large Magellanic Cloud galaxy in infrared light, this nearby dwarf galaxy looks like a fiery, circular explosion. Rather than fire, however, those ribbons are actually giant ripples of dust spanning tens or hundreds of light-years. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4872-ssc2012-01a-Dusty-Space-Cloud ssc2012-01a Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000 A bubbling cauldron of star birth is highlighted in this new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4868-ssc2012-02a-Stars-Brewing-in-Cygnus-X ssc2012-02a Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000 This image shows one of the most distant galaxies known, called GN-108036, dating back to 750 million years after the Big Bang that created our universe. The galaxy's light took 12.9 billion years to reach us. Collage http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4847-ssc2011-10a-Distant-Galaxy-Bursts-with-Stars ssc2011-10a Wed, 21 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +0000 This turbulent region, jam-packed with stars, is home to some of the most luminous massive stars in our Milky Way galaxy. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4838-sig11-018-Dragonfish-Coming-At-You-in-Infrared sig11-018 Mon, 12 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +0000 This spectacular spiral galaxy is known to astronomers as Messier 83. Colloquially, it is also called the Southern Pinwheel due to its similarity to the more northerly Pinwheel galaxy Messier 101. NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope shows us, in spectacular detail, the infrared structure of what many think of as our own Milky Way galaxys smaller cousin. Observation http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/4832-sig11-016-A-Dusty-View-of-Milky-Ways-Smaller-Cousin sig11-016 Wed, 23 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000