APOD: Tarantula Stars R136 from Webb (2022 Sep 07)

[APOD Robot]

Tarantula Stars R136 from Webb

Explanation: Near the center of a nearby star-forming region lies a massive cluster containing some of the largest and hottest stars known. Collectively known as star cluster NGC 2070, these stars are part of the vast Tarantula Nebula and were captured in two kinds of infrared light by the new Webb Space Telescope. The main image shows the group of stars at NGC 2070's center -- known as R136 -- in near-infrared, light just a bit too red for humans to see. In contrast, the rollover image captures the cluster center in mid-infrared light, light closer to radio waves. Since R136's brightest stars emit more of their light in the near infrared, they are much more prominent on that image. This LMC cluster's massive stars emit particle winds and energetic light that are evaporating the gas cloud from which they formed. The Webb images, released yesterday, shows details of R136 and its surroundings that have never been seen before, details that are helping humanity to better understanding of how all stars are born, evolve and die.

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[Ann]

It is interesting to compare James Webb's NIRCam near infrared image with Hubble's optical one:

R136 in the Tarantula Nebula by James Webb's NIRCam. Images Credit & Copyright: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERO Production Team

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R136 in the Tarantula Nebula by Hubble. Credit: NASA, ESA, F. Paresce (INAF-IASF, Bologna, Italy), R. O'Connell (University of Virginia, Charlottesville), and the Wide Field Camera 3 Science Oversight Committee

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Note in the Hubble image a dark dust lane just above the R136 cluster itself. The dust lane is "folded over on itself". It is more obvious here:

Click to view full size image

In the MIRI image, the dark dust lane is near the image center. It appears to be connected to a larger dust structure at its upper left.

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In the MIRI image, the prominent dark dust lane is seen to be apparently connected to a larger cloud of gas and dust to its upper left (presumably to its north west).

Note the brilliant yellow star in the NIRCam image. The same star is visible at center left in the MIRI image. What kind of star is that?

Well, look at the first Hubble image I posted, There is an orange star in that position. It is the only orange star among all the blue stars in the Hubble image. I have always thought of this orange star as the only red giant in (or near) R136 in the Tarantula Nebula.

It sure shines in infrared.

Ann

[Holger Nielsen]

Very interesting comparison, Ann, thank you for your effort. Your desciptions helped finding the same features on different images.

[VictorBorun]

Note the brilliant yellow star in the NIRCam image. The same star is visible at center left in the MIRI image. What kind of star is that?
Well, look at the first Hubble image I posted, There is an orange star in that position. It is the only orange star among all the blue stars in the Hubble image. I have always thought of this orange star as the only red giant in (or near) R136 in the Tarantula Nebula.
It sure shines in infrared.

I tried to locate it in simbad at
05 38 48.56 -69 05 31.49
and got this:
W61 7-8 -- Red Supergiant

Now I wonder what to make of wiki's statement:
R136 is thought to be less than 2 million years old.[8][9] None of the member stars is significantly evolved and none is thought to have exploded as supernova. The brightest stars are WNh, O supergiants, and OIf/WN slash stars, all extremely massive fully convective stars. There are no red supergiants, blue hypergiants, or luminous blue variables within the cluster.

[VictorBorun]

Note in the Hubble image a dark dust lane just above the R136 cluster itself. The dust lane is "folded over on itself". It is more obvious here:
In the MIRI image, the prominent dark dust lane is seen to be apparently connected to a larger cloud of gas and dust to its upper left (presumably to its north west).

That dust lane is not only getting pale in Hubble; the pic is cropped

[VictorBorun]

dust lane in Hubble over Webb MIRI

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

[Ann]

Note the brilliant yellow star in the NIRCam image. The same star is visible at center left in the MIRI image. What kind of star is that?
Well, look at the first Hubble image I posted, There is an orange star in that position. It is the only orange star among all the blue stars in the Hubble image. I have always thought of this orange star as the only red giant in (or near) R136 in the Tarantula Nebula.
It sure shines in infrared.

I tried to locate it in simbad at
05 38 48.56 -69 05 31.49
and got this:
W61 7-8 -- Red Supergiant

Now I wonder what to make of wiki's statement:
R136 is thought to be less than 2 million years old.[8][9] None of the member stars is significantly evolved and none is thought to have exploded as supernova. The brightest stars are WNh, O supergiants, and OIf/WN slash stars, all extremely massive fully convective stars. There are no red supergiants, blue hypergiants, or luminous blue variables within the cluster.

Perhaps W61 7-8 is not thought to be a part of R136 proper?

Nice hover image, by the way!

Ann

[VictorBorun]

fitting Hubble to NIRCAM

[VictorBorun]

Hubble over Webb NIRCAM

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

[VictorBorun]

there is a red regular hexagon frame around a star in mid IR (18 μm wide filter)

In this cut it's in the top right corner:

red hexagon MIRI.jpg (47.29 KiB) Viewed 7328 times

I think it's an artefact similar to spikes, but I am surprised how regular this hexagon is

[orin stepanek]

what a difference the light source for photos make!

I love R136 star cluster; just for it's beauty!

Nosy doggy!

[Chris Peterson]

Since R136's brightest stars emit more of their light in the near infrared, they are much more prominent on that image.

That observation could be misunderstood. As very hot objects, ALL stars emit more of their energy in the near-IR than at even longer wavelengths. But none emit very much of their total energy in the IR, as compared with visible light. The brightest stars here emit most of their energy in the blue or even UV part of the spectrum.

An interesting thing we see in this image is the much lower resolution of the long wavelength image. In near-IR, the JWST resolution is better than the HST, because of its much larger mirror. But at longer IR wavelengths, the two have the same resolution.

[bystander]

Here is a great side-by-side from ESA

https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Imag ... ula_Nebula

See also: viewtopic.php?p=325649#p325649

[VictorBorun]

Fitting the new-born star images:
1. Hubble (the newborn in the centre is not visible through its dust cocon) to NIRCam

R136 newborn Hubble-.jpg (15.82 KiB) Viewed 7272 times

R136 newborn near IR.jpg (16.35 KiB) Viewed 7272 times

[VictorBorun]

2. Hubble to MIRI

[VictorBorun]

Hubble over NIRCam

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

Hubble over MIRI

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

Webb site says their near IR spectrum shows the protostar bubble as a top of a pillar, not yet blown from inside by the newborn star, but blown from outside by the forming globular stellar cluster

My frame is cut here:

[AVAO]

Hubble over NIRCam

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

Hubble over MIRI

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

Webb site says their near IR spectrum shows the protostar bubble as a top of a pillar, not yet blown from inside by the newborn star, but blown from outside by the forming globular stellar cluster

My frame is cut here:
R136 cut.jpg

Very cool Victor!

And as far as i can see, there are plenty of star births to be found in the he prominent dark dust lane of Ann too.
Jac

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

jac berne (flickr) Image 1: subtraction JWST/HST Image 2: HST

[VictorBorun]

I am confused with this:
The signature of atomic hydrogen, shown in blue, shows up in the star itself but not immediately surrounding it. Instead, it appears outside the “bubble,” which spectra show is actually “filled” with molecular hydrogen (green) and complex hydrocarbons (red). This indicates that the bubble is actually the top of a dense pillar of dust and gas that is being blasted by radiation from the cluster of massive young stars to its lower right (see the full NIRCam image). It does not appear as pillar-like as some other structures in the nebula because there is not much color contrast with the area surrounding it.

Where is that pillar?

[VictorBorun]

And as far as i can see, there are plenty of star births to be found in the he prominent dark dust lane of Ann too.
Jac

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

jac berne (flickr) Image 1: subtraction JWST/HST Image 2: HST

Those stars are, however, inside a thick dust nebula; they may all be already born, may already have broken their tight dust cocons.
So the star of the perinatal story is a first

[heehaw]

Wow, those are just wonderful images!

[Ann]

I am confused with this:
The signature of atomic hydrogen, shown in blue, shows up in the star itself but not immediately surrounding it. Instead, it appears outside the “bubble,” which spectra show is actually “filled” with molecular hydrogen (green) and complex hydrocarbons (red). This indicates that the bubble is actually the top of a dense pillar of dust and gas that is being blasted by radiation from the cluster of massive young stars to its lower right (see the full NIRCam image). It does not appear as pillar-like as some other structures in the nebula because there is not much color contrast with the area surrounding it.

Where is that pillar?

I think the pillar is here:

Pillars can be "standing up" as well as "hanging down". Their heads are always turned toward the source of ionization.

Consider the pillar structures in M16, the Eagle Nebula:

Major 'pillar structures' in the Eagle Nebula. Image: Hubble.

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There are three major pillar structures in the Eagle Nebula, and I count the famous Pillars of Creation as one pillar structure. The large dark triangular structure "hanging down" is another one, and the "fairy-like creature" on the left is a third.

Ann

[johnnydeep]

Why does the large diffraction spike pattern rotate slightly between the two Webb images? I suppose Webb itself had rotated between the two imaging sessions?

[AVAO]

Those stars are, however, inside a thick dust nebula; they may all be already born, may already have broken their tight dust cocons.
So the star of the perinatal story is a first

Ok I agree. That's right.

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

jac berne (flickr) JWST overlay

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

jac berne (flickr) Image 1: JWST Image 2: HST