Newborn stars, hidden behind thick dust, are revealed in this image of a section of the Christmas Tree Cluster from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, created in joint effort between Spitzer's Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) and Multiband Imaging Photometer (MIPS) instruments. The newly revealed...
We are Stardust
This colorful cosmic view is part of a Spitzer Space Telescope art project 2010 Winter Olympics cultural festival in Vancouver.
SMC
Little Galaxy Explored
The infrared portrait of the Small Magellanic Cloud reveals the stars and dust in this galaxy as never seen before.
Epsilon Aurigae
Mystery of the Fading Star
Astronomers have found a likely solution to a centuries-old riddle of the night sky. Every 27 years, a bright star called Epsilon Aurigae fades over period of two years, then brightens back up again.
Epsilon Aurigae
Epsilon Aurigae Puzzle Pieces Snap Into Place
This graph of data from multiple telescopes shows the distribution of light from a pair of stars known as Epsilon Aurigae.
SMC
Little Galaxy with a Tail
The infrared portrait of the Small Magellanic Cloud reveals the stars and dust in this galaxy as never seen before.
SMC
Little Galaxy Explored
The infrared portrait of the Small Magellanic Cloud reveals the stars and dust in this galaxy as never seen before.
SMC
Dusty, Little Galaxy
The infrared portrait of the Small Magellanic Cloud reveals the stars and dust in this galaxy as never seen before.
Rho Oph
A Quarter Century of Infrared Astronomy
International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA) Infrared Processing and Analysis Center, California Institute of Technology
Proto Brown Dwarf
Twin Brown Dwarfs Wrapped in a Blanket
This image shows two young brown dwarfs, objects that fall somewhere between planets and stars in terms of their temperature and mass. Brown dwarfs are cooler and less massive than stars, never igniting the nuclear fires that power their larger cousins, yet they are more massive (and normally...
Dusty Beginnings of a Star
This artist's rendering gives us a glimpse into a cosmic nursery as a star is born from the dark, swirling dust and gas of this cloud.
Proto Brown Dwarf
Twin Brown Dwarfs Wrapped in a Blanket
This image shows two young brown dwarfs, objects that fall somewhere between planets and stars in terms of their temperature and mass. Brown dwarfs are cooler and less massive than stars, never igniting the nuclear fires that power their larger cousins, yet they are more massive (and normally...
Crab Nebula
NASA's Great Observatory View of the Crab Nebula
A star's spectacular death in the constellation Taurus was observed on Earth as the supernova of 1054 A.D. Now, almost a thousand years later, a superdense neutron star left behind by the stellar death is spewing out a blizzard of extremely high-energy particles into the expanding debris field...
Galactic Center
Great Observatories' Unique Views of the Milky Way
In celebration of the International Year of Astronomy 2009, NASA's Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- have produced a matched trio of images of the central region of our Milky Way galaxy.
Galactic Center
NASA's Great Observatories Examine the Galaxy Center
In celebration of the International Year of Astronomy 2009, NASA's Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- have produced a matched trio of images of the central region of our Milky Way galaxy.
Galactic Center
Great Observatories' Unique Views of the Milky Way
In celebration of the International Year of Astronomy 2009, NASA's Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- have produced a matched trio of images of the central region of our Milky Way galaxy.
Galactic Center
Great Observatories' Unique Views of the Milky Way
In celebration of the International Year of Astronomy 2009, NASA's Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- have produced a matched trio of images of the central region of our Milky Way galaxy.
Galactic Center
Great Observatories' Unique Views of the Milky Way
In celebration of the International Year of Astronomy 2009, NASA's Great Observatories -- the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory -- have produced a matched trio of images of the central region of our Milky Way galaxy.
Saturn
Artist's Rendering of Saturn's Infrared Ring
This artist's conception shows a nearly invisible ring around Saturn -- the largest of the giant planet's many rings. It was discovered by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
HD 218396
A Picture of Unsettled Planetary Youth
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope captured this infrared image of a giant halo of very fine dust around the young star HR 8799, located 129 light-years away in the constellation Pegasus.
Exotic Atmospheres
The basic chemistry for life has been detected in a second hot gas planet, HD 209458b, depicted in this artist's concept. Two of NASA's Great Observatories - the Hubble Space Telescope and Spitzer Space Telescope, yielded spectral observations that revealed molecules of carbon dioxide, methane...
Saturn
Big Band of Dust
This picture shows a slice of Saturn's largest ring, as seen in infrared light by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The observatory viewed the ring edge-on from its Earth-trailing orbit around the sun. It detected the infrared light, or heat, form the ring's dusty material.
Saturn
Infrared Ring Around Saturn
This diagram highlights a slice of Saturn's largest ring. The ring (red band in inset photo) was discovered by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which detected infrared light, or heat, from the dusty ring material. Spitzer viewed the ring edge-on from its Earth-trailing orbit around the sun.
Saturn
Artist's Rendering of Saturn's Infrared Ring
This artist's conception shows a nearly invisible ring around Saturn -- the largest of the giant planet's many rings. It was discovered by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Saturn
The King of Rings
This diagram illustrates the extent of the largest ring around Saturn, discovered by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The ring is huge, and far from the gas planet and the rest of its majestic rings.
LRLL 31
Lump of Planetary Stuff
This artist's conception shows a lump of material in a swirling, planet-forming disk.
Cepheus B
Trigger-Happy Cloud
This composite image, combining data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and Spitzer Space Telescope shows the star-forming cloud Cepheus B, located in our Milky Way galaxy about 2,400 light years from Earth.
Cepheus B
Trigger-Happy Cloud
This composite image, combining data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and Spitzer Space Telescope shows the star-forming cloud Cepheus B, located in our Milky Way galaxy about 2,400 light years from Earth.
HD 172555
Planetary Demolition Derby
This artist's animation shows a celestial body about the size of our moon slamming at great speed into a body the size of Mercury.
HD 172555
Signs of Blasted Rock
This spectrum, or plot of infrared data, from NASA's Spitzer Space telescope reveals the presence of vaporized and melted rock, along with rubble, around a young, hot star.
Cygnus Region
Spitzer's First Warm Images
These images are some of the first to be taken during Spitzer's warm mission -- a new phase that began after the telescope, which operated for more than five-and-a-half years, ran out of liquid coolant. They show a star formation region (DR22 in Cygnus), a galaxy (NGC 4145), and a planetary...
Cygnus Region
Cygnus Star Forming Region DR22
This infrared picture shows a cloud, known as DR22, bursting with new stars in the Cygnus region of the sky. Spitzer's infrared eyes can both see through and see dust, giving it a unique view into star-forming nests. The blue areas are dusty clouds, and the orange is mainly hot gas.
NGC 4361
Planetary Nebula NGC 4361
This infrared picture shows a dying star called NGC 4361. This star was once a lot like our sun, before it evolved and puffed out its outer layers. The object, called a planetary nebula, is unusual in that is has four lobes, or jets, of ejected material instead of the standard two.
NGC 4145
Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 4145
This infrared picture shows a relatively calm galaxy called NGC 4145. This galaxy has already made most of its stars and has little star-forming activity. It is located 68 million light-years away in the constellation Canes Venatici. Blue shows starlight and dust.
NGC 1097
Coiled Creature of the Night
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has imaged a wild creature of the dark -- a coiled galaxy with an eye-like object at its center.
NGC 1097
Coiled Creature of the Night
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has imaged a wild creature of the dark -- a coiled galaxy with an eye-like object at its center.
RCW 49
2-Channel RCW 49
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has warmed up but that has not stopped it from continuing its science mission. Even a warm Spitzer can take images like those of the star-forming region RCW 49, pictured in the background.
RCW 49
2-Channel RCW 49
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has warmed up but that has not stopped it from continuing its science mission. Even a warm Spitzer can take images like those of the star-forming region RCW 49, pictured in the background.
RCW 49
2-Channel RCW 49
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has warmed up but that has not stopped it from continuing its science mission. Even a warm Spitzer can take images like those of the star-forming region RCW 49, pictured in the background.
RCW 49
2-Channel RCW 49
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has warmed up but that has not stopped it from continuing its science mission. Even a warm Spitzer can take images like those of the star-forming region RCW 49, pictured in the background.
Spitzer Space Telescope
2-Channel RCW 49
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has warmed up but that has not stopped it from continuing its science mission. Even a warm Spitzer can take images like those of the star-forming region RCW 49, pictured in the background.
Telltale Signs of Stellar Youth
These data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveal a newborn star at the center of our Milky Way. Our galaxy's core is a frenzied place, and identifying baby stars there has been difficult. Dust standing between us and the core blocks visible light, but infrared light, as detected by Spitzer,...
Milky Way
Baby Stars in Galactic Rat's Nest
This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows three baby stars in the bustling center of our Milky Way galaxy. The three stars are the first to be discovered in the region. Spitzer was able to find the newborns with its sharp infrared eyes, which can cut through dust which...
EX Lupi
Silicate Crystal Formation in the Disk of an Erupting Star
This artist's concept illustrates how silicate crystals like those found in comets can be created by an outburst from a growing star.
EX Lupi
Seeing Crystals Form Around a Young Star
Astronomers have had a rare opportunity to witness the creation of silicate crystals around a young star, as seen in this data plot from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
EX Lupi
Silicate Crystal Formation in the Disk of an Erupting Star
This artist's concept illustrates how silicate crystals like those found in comets can be created by an outburst from a growing star.
Artist's Conception of Spitzer Giving an Interview
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope is about to use its last drop of the coolant that has chilled it for the past five-and-a-half years. On about May 12, give or take a week or so, the observatory is predicted to run out of the liquid helium that has run through its veins, keeping its infrared...
Bode's Galaxy
Star Streams in the Galaxy M81
On the left is an image of Messier 81 taken in blue light, while on the right is a specially-processed version of an image taken with the Spitzer Space Telescope's infrared array camera (IRAC) at 4.5 microns.
Bode's Galaxy
Star Streams in the Galaxy M81
On the left is an image of Messier 81 taken in blue light, while on the right is a specially-processed version of an image taken with the Spitzer Space Telescope's infrared array camera (IRAC) at 4.5 microns.
NGC 2841
The Smooth Spiral Galaxy NGC 2841
Located about 46 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Ursa Major, NGC 2841 is helping astronomers solve one of the oldest puzzles in astronomy: Why do galaxies look so smooth, with stars sprinkled evenly throughout?
Triangulum Galaxy
Multispectral Triangulum Galaxy 4 Channel
This image is a blend of the Galaxy Evolution Explorer's M33 image and another taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. M33, one of our closest galactic neighbors, is about 2.9 million light-years away in the constellation Triangulum, part of what's known as our Local Group of galaxies.
Triangulum Galaxy
Multispectral Triangulum Galaxy 3 Channel
This image is a blend of the Galaxy Evolution Explorer's M33 image and another taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. M33, one of our closest galactic neighbors, is about 2.9 million light-years away in the constellation Triangulum, part of what's known as our Local Group of galaxies.
GD 16
Emission from the White Dwarf System GD 16
This chart shows the brightness and wavelength of the radiation coming from white dwarf GD 16 and its associated disk of closely orbiting rocky material.
Chemical Soups Around Cool Stars
This artist's conception shows a young, hypothetical planet around a cool star. A soupy mix of potentially life-forming chemicals can be seen pooling around the base of the jagged rocks.
Cool Stars May Have Different Prebiotic Chemical Mix
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope detected a prebiotic, or potentially life-forming, molecule called hydrogen cyanide (HCN) in the planet-forming disks around yellow stars like our sun, but not in the disks around cooler, reddish stars.
Triangulum Galaxy
M33: A Close Neighbor Reveals its True Size and Splendor
One of our closest galactic neighbors shows its awesome beauty in this new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Triangulum Galaxy
M33: A Close Neighbor Reveals its True Size and Splendor
One of our closest galactic neighbors shows its awesome beauty in this new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Triangulum Galaxy
M33: Infrared View of a Close Neighbor
One of our closest galactic neighbors shows its awesome beauty in this new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Triangulum Galaxy
M33: Infrared View of a Close Neighbor
One of our closest galactic neighbors shows its awesome beauty in this new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
NGC 6240
Galaxies Collide to Create Hot, Huge Galaxy
This image of a pair of colliding galaxies called NGC 6240 shows them in a rare, short-lived phase of their evolution just before they merge into a single, larger galaxy.
NGC 6240
Ultraluminous Galaxy Merger NGC 6240
This image of a pair of colliding galaxies called NGC 6240 shows them in a rare, short-lived phase of their evolution just before they merge into a single, larger galaxy.
