NASA's three Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- joined forces to probe the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer...
The View from Within AU Microscopii's Disk
This is an artist's impression of the view from the vicinity of a hypothetical terrestrial planet and moon orbiting the red dwarf star AU Microscopii. The relatively newborn 12 million year-old star is surrounded by a very dusty disk of debris from the comets, asteroids, and planetissimals...
This graph of data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope indicates that stars with known planets (blue) are more likely to have "debris disks" than stars without known planets (red).
Debris Disks Around Sun-Like Stars AU Microscopii and HD 107146
Debris disks are shown here around two stars, one a small red dwarf, the other like our sun but much younger.
Debris Disks Around Sun-Like Star HD 107146
This is a false-color view of a planetary debris disk encircling the star HD 107146, a yellow dwarf star very similar to our Sun, though much younger.
Model of AU Microscopii Disk
This is a so-called scatter model based on the Hubble Space Telescope image of the planetary debris encircling the star AU Microscopii.
Debris Disks Around Red Dwarf AU Microscopii
A visible-light image of a debris disk around the red dwarf star AU Microscopii. Planets may be forming, or might already exist, within it.
Is There Anybody Home?
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope recently captured these infrared images of six older stars with known planets. The yellow, fuzzy blobs are stars circled by disks of dust, or "debris disks," like the one that surrounds our own Sun. Though astronomers had predicted that stars with planets would...
Kuiper Belt Object 2002 AW197
Spitzer View of Kuiper Belt object 2002 AW197 This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows 70 micron data for Kuiper Belt object 2002 AW197.
Kuiper Belt Object 2002 AW197
Spitzer View of Kuiper Belt object 2002 AW197 This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows 24 micron data for Kuiper Belt object 2002 AW197.
Kuiper Belt Object 2002 AW197
Spitzer View of Kuiper Belt object 2002 AW197 This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows 24 micron and 70 micron data for Kuiper Belt object 2002 AW197.
The Starless Core that Isn't
The "Cores to Disks" Spitzer Legacy team is using the two infrared cameras on NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope to search dense regions of interstellar molecular clouds (known as "cores") for evidence of star formation. Part of the study targeted a group of objects with no known stars to study the...
Spitzer Spectrum of Ices in a Protoplanetary Disc
Astronomers have made the first clear detection of a variety of ices -- water, ammonium, and carbon dioxide -- in the inner planet-forming region near a young star about 120 light years away. Such an observation is only possible by combining the unique sensitivity of NASA's Spitzer Space...
Artist's Conception of L1014
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has detected a faint, warm object inside the apparently starless core of a small, dense molecular cloud. If, as astronomers suspect, there is a young star deep inside the dusty core, it would have a structure similar to this illustration.
Spitzer View of the Core L1014
The "Cores to Disks" Spitzer Legacy team is using the two infrared cameras on NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope to search dense regions of interstellar molecular clouds (known as "cores") for evidence of star formation. Part of the study targeted a group of objects with no known stars to study the...
Visible Light View of Core L1014
This visible light image shows a dense region of an interstellar molecular cloud known as a "core". The core is known as L1014, the 1,014th object in a list of dark, dusty "clouds" compiled by astronomer Beverly Lynds over 40 years ago.
What does an extremely young planetary system look like? The answer depends on your point of view. This diagram shows how such a system appears when viewed from different directions.
Visible Light View of the Spiral Galaxy M51 ("Whirlpool Galaxy")
This visible light four-color composite of the spiral galaxy M51 comes from the Kitt Peak National Observatory 2.1m telescope and shows emissions from 0.4 to 0.7 microns, including the H-alpha nebular feature.
Spitzer View of the Spiral Galaxy M51 ("Whirlpool Galaxy")
This visible light four-color composite of the spiral galaxy M51 comes from the Kitt Peak National Observatory 2.1m telescope and shows emissions from 0.4 to 0.7 microns, including the H-alpha nebular feature.
First Peek at Spitzer's Legacy: Mysterious Whirlpool Galaxy
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has captured these infrared images of the "Whirlpool Galaxy," revealing strange structures bridging the gaps between the dust-rich spiral arms, and tracing the dust, gas and stellar populations in both the bright spiral galaxy and its companion.
Mysterious Blob Galaxies Revealed
This image composite shows a giant galactic blob (red, left) and the three merging galaxies NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope discovered within it (yellow, right).
Distant Galaxy Cluster
This visible-light image shows a giant galactic blob containing the three merging galaxies NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope discovered within it.
'Galactic Ghoul' Rears Its Spooky Head
A "monster" lurking behind a blanket of cosmic dust is unveiled in this new Halloween image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. Resembling a ghoul with two hollow eyes and a screaming mouth, this masked cloud of newborn stars was uncovered by Spitzer's heat-seeking infrared eyes.
Star Formation Region DR 6
A "monster" lurking behind a blanket of cosmic dust is unveiled in this 2004 Halloween image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. Resembling a ghoul with two hollow eyes and a screaming mouth, this cloud of newborn stars was uncovered by Spitzer's heat-seeking infrared eyes.
Massive Young Stars Trigger Stellar Birth
RCW 108 is a region where stars are actively forming within the Milky Way galaxy about 4,000 light years from Earth. This is a complicated region that contains young star clusters, including one that is deeply embedded in a cloud of molecular hydrogen. By using data from different telescopes,...
This artist's concept illustrates how planetary systems arise out of massive collisions between rocky bodies. New findings from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope show that these catastrophes continue to occur around stars even after they have developed full-sized planets, when they are as old as one...
This artist's concept illustrates how planetary systems arise out of massive collisions between rocky bodies. New findings from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope show that these catastrophes continue to occur around stars even after they have developed full-sized planets, when they are as old as one...
This graph shows the extent of planetary debris discs around nearby stars of various ages, as measured by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
This artist's concept illustrates how planetary systems arise out of massive collisions between rocky bodies. New findings from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope show that these catastrophes continue to occur around stars even after they have developed full-sized planets, when they are as old as one...
Visible Light View of the GLIMPSE-C01 Region
This visible light image shows the region in which NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope revealed a globular cluster (GLIMPSE-C01) previously hidden in the dusty plane of our Milky Way galaxy.
Galactic Fossil Found Behind Curtain of Dust
This image mosaic shows the same patch of sky in various wavelengths of light. While the visible-light image (left) shows a dark sky speckled with stars, infrared images (middle and right), reveal a never-before-seen bundle of stars, called a globular cluster.
Spitzer Digs Up Galactic Fossil
This infrared image taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows a globular cluster previously hidden in the dusty plane of our Milky Way galaxy. Globular clusters are compact bundles of old stars that date back to the birth of our galaxy, 13 or so billion years ago. Astronomers use these...
Spitzer Reveals a New Globular Cluster
This infrared image taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows a globular cluster previously hidden in the dusty plane of our Milky Way galaxy. Globular clusters are compact bundles of old stars that date back to the birth of our galaxy, 13 or so billion years ago. Astronomers use these...
Chandra X-ray View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant - SN 1604
This image from the Chandra X-ray Observatory shows the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer Johannes Kepler.
Chandra High Energy X-ray View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant - SN 1604
This High Energy X-ray image from the Chandra X-ray Observatory shows the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer Johannes Kepler.
Spitzer View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant - SN 1604
This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer Johannes Kepler.
Hubble View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant - SN 1604
This image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer Johannes Kepler.
Chandra Low Energy X-ray View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant - SN 1604
This Low Energy X-ray image from the Chandra X-ray Observatory shows the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer Johannes Kepler.
Kepler's "De Stella Nova" (1606) Title Page
Johannes Kepler documented the explosion of a supernova in 1604, which he documented in this book, "De Stella Nova" (Prague, 1606)
Spitzer View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant - SN 1604
This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer Johannes Kepler.
Illustration from Kepler's "De Stella Nova" (1606)
Johannes Kepler documented the explosion of a supernova in 1604, which he documented in this book, "De Stella Nova" (Prague, 1606)
NASA's Great Observatories Provide a Detailed View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant
NASA's three Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- joined forces to probe the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer...
Hubble View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant - SN 1604
This image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer Johannes Kepler.
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
Johannes Kepler documented the explosion of a supernova in 1604, which was the last such event observed in our Milky Way galaxy and would later be known as "Kepler's supernova."
Kepler's "De Stella Nova" (1606)
Johannes Kepler documented the explosion of a supernova in 1604, which he documented in this book, "De Stella Nova" (Prague, 1606)
Composite View of Kepler's Supernova Remnant - SN 1604
NASA's three Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- joined forces to probe the expanding remains of a supernova, called Kepler's supernova remnant, first seen 400 years ago by sky watchers, including famous astronomer...
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
Johannes Kepler documented the explosion of a supernova in 1604, which was the last such event observed in our Milky Way galaxy and would later be known as "Kepler's supernova."
Kepler's Supernova Remnant: Views from Chandra, Hubble and Spitzer
These images represent views of Kepler's supernova remnant taken in X-rays, visible light, and infrared radiation. The images indicate that the bubble of gas that makes up the supernova remnant appears different in various types of light.
Visible-Light View of the Antennae Galaxies
This visible-light view of The Antennae Galaxies, a pair of interacting galaxies in the constellation Corvus, shows the dust clouds surrounding the two galactic nuclei along with several newly formed, massive stars.
Spitzer view of the Antennae Galaxies
This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveals hidden populations of newborn stars at the heart of the colliding "Antennae" galaxies. These two galaxies, known individually as NGC 4038 and 4039, are located around 68 million light-years away and have been merging together for...
Composite view of the Antennae Galaxies
This composite color image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveals hidden populations of newborn stars at the heart of the colliding "Antennae" galaxies. These two galaxies, known individually as NGC 4038 and 4039, are located around 68 million light-years away and have been merging together...
Fire Within the Antennae Galaxies
This image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveals hidden populations of newborn stars at the heart of the colliding "Antennae" galaxies. These two galaxies, known individually as NGC 4038 and 4039, are located around 68 million light-years away and have been merging together for about the...
Ring of Stellar Death
This image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows a dying star (center) surrounded by a cloud of glowing gas and dust. Spitzer has pierced through the dust to highlight a never-before-seen feature -- a giant ring of material (red) slightly offset from the cloud's core which consists of...
Spitzer View of Planetary Nebula NGC 246
This image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows a dying star (center) surrounded by a cloud of glowing gas and dust. Spitzer has pierced through the dust to highlight a never-before-seen feature -- a giant ring of material (red) slightly offset from the cloud's core which consists of...
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