APOD: NGC 602: Stars Versus Pillars from Webb (2024 Oct 29)

[APOD Robot]

NGC 602: Stars Versus Pillars from Webb

Explanation: The stars are destroying the pillars. More specifically, some of the newly formed stars in the image center are emitting light so energetic that is evaporating the gas and dust in the surrounding pillars. Simultaneously, the pillars themselves are still trying to form new stars. The whole setting is the star cluster NGC 602, and this new vista was taken by the Webb Space Telescope in multiple infrared colors. In comparison, a roll-over image shows the same star cluster in visible light, taken previously by the Hubble Space Telescope. NGC 602 is located near the perimeter of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a small satellite galaxy of our Milky Way galaxy. At the estimated distance of the SMC, the featured picture spans about 200 light-years. A tantalizing assortment of background galaxies are also visible -- mostly around the edges -- that are at least hundreds of millions of light-years beyond.

<< Previous APOD

This Day in APOD

Next APOD >>

[AVAO]

NGC 602: Stars Versus Pillars from Webb

Explanation: The stars are destroying the pillars. More specifically, some of the newly formed stars in the image center are emitting light so energetic that is evaporating the gas and dust in the surrounding pillars. Simultaneously, the pillars themselves are still trying to form new stars. The whole setting is the star cluster NGC 602, and this new vista was taken by the Webb Space Telescope in multiple infrared colors. In comparison, a roll-over image shows the same star cluster in visible light, taken previously by the Hubble Space Telescope. NGC 602 is located near the perimeter of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a small satellite galaxy of our Milky Way galaxy. At the estimated distance of the SMC, the featured picture spans about 200 light-years. A tantalizing assortment of background galaxies are also visible -- mostly around the edges -- that are at least hundreds of millions of light-years beyond.

<< Previous APOD

This Day in APOD

Next APOD >>

https://www.universetoday.com/168993/th ... -milky-way

The Webb Discovers a Rich Population of Brown Dwarfs Outside the Milky Way

This stunning image of a star cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) is more than just a pretty picture. It’s part of a scientific effort to understand star formation in an environment different from ours. The young star cluster is called NGC 602, and it’s very young, only about 2 or 3 million years old. "

"The researchers found 64 brown dwarf candidates in the cluster. They ranged from 0.05 to 0.08 solar masses (50-84 Jupiter masses) and are co-located with main sequence stars. The low stellar density in the cluster helped the JWST resolve individual objects."

"The data from this work shows that the low-mass objects in NGC 602 are well below the characteristic mass. The brown dwarfs have masses between 0.048 and 0.08 solar masses or 50 and 84 Jupiter masses. Since these brown dwarfs are co-located with the cluster’s young pre-Main Sequence Stars, it suggests they formed synchronously. This indicates that the stellar mass function continues into the substellar mass regime."

This first study is just their first step, and they intend on digging deeper. “The accurate selection of ages, together with the superb sensitivity and calibration of JWST, will allow us, in a forthcoming paper, to reliably study the substellar mass function, well below the turnover of the IMF,” the authors write.It’s all aimed at understanding how brown dwarfs form. If they can study the sub-stellar IMF in detail, they can determine whether it’s a continuation of the stellar IMF. Then, the researchers can answer an important unanswered question: do these objects form from the fragmentation and collapse of giant molecular clouds like stars do? Or do they form from the fragmentation of circumstellar disks like planets do?

As of now, they have only a partial answer. “From this work, the colocation with the PMS suggests that the formation channel of the cBDs is the same as the one for their more massive stellar counterparts, as expected from solar neighbourhood studies: the fragmentation and collapse of the GMC,” the authors conclude.

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

bigger: https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/541 ... 7132_o.jpg

[DeaconBob]

I find it interesting that certain objects are enhanced in the Webb image (primarily in the golden-hued spectrum) which are missing from the Hubble image, while in the case of others, especially foreground stars, it is reversed. Despite the enhanced detail of the gas clouds and their intense variety of colors, I much prefer the Hubble image aesthetically. The Webb image looks too ... artificial, like something that was generated by image enhancement software. The effect is probably what was desired and more beneficial from an analytical perspective, but for sheer beauty I'd stick with Hubble.

It is a great comparison, however.

[HellCat]

Oh my goodness.
The incredible detail - the subtlies that have been revealed (again) - and the galaxies.
Oh, the galaxies!
Not much of a discussion for me on this.
And the juxtaposition of the two images is at least as inspiring as either one individually.
The old mind has been blown.

[johnnydeep]

NGC 602: Stars Versus Pillars from Webb

Explanation: The stars are destroying the pillars. More specifically, some of the newly formed stars in the image center are emitting light so energetic that is evaporating the gas and dust in the surrounding pillars. Simultaneously, the pillars themselves are still trying to form new stars. The whole setting is the star cluster NGC 602, and this new vista was taken by the Webb Space Telescope in multiple infrared colors. In comparison, a roll-over image shows the same star cluster in visible light, taken previously by the Hubble Space Telescope. NGC 602 is located near the perimeter of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a small satellite galaxy of our Milky Way galaxy. At the estimated distance of the SMC, the featured picture spans about 200 light-years. A tantalizing assortment of background galaxies are also visible -- mostly around the edges -- that are at least hundreds of millions of light-years beyond.

<< Previous APOD

This Day in APOD

Next APOD >>

https://www.universetoday.com/168993/th ... -milky-way

The Webb Discovers a Rich Population of Brown Dwarfs Outside the Milky Way

This stunning image of a star cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) is more than just a pretty picture. It’s part of a scientific effort to understand star formation in an environment different from ours. The young star cluster is called NGC 602, and it’s very young, only about 2 or 3 million years old. "

"The researchers found 64 brown dwarf candidates in the cluster. They ranged from 0.05 to 0.08 solar masses (50-84 Jupiter masses) and are co-located with main sequence stars. The low stellar density in the cluster helped the JWST resolve individual objects."

"The data from this work shows that the low-mass objects in NGC 602 are well below the characteristic mass. The brown dwarfs have masses between 0.048 and 0.08 solar masses or 50 and 84 Jupiter masses. Since these brown dwarfs are co-located with the cluster’s young pre-Main Sequence Stars, it suggests they formed synchronously. This indicates that the stellar mass function continues into the substellar mass regime."

This first study is just their first step, and they intend on digging deeper. “The accurate selection of ages, together with the superb sensitivity and calibration of JWST, will allow us, in a forthcoming paper, to reliably study the substellar mass function, well below the turnover of the IMF,” the authors write.It’s all aimed at understanding how brown dwarfs form. If they can study the sub-stellar IMF in detail, they can determine whether it’s a continuation of the stellar IMF. Then, the researchers can answer an important unanswered question: do these objects form from the fragmentation and collapse of giant molecular clouds like stars do? Or do they form from the fragmentation of circumstellar disks like planets do?

As of now, they have only a partial answer. “From this work, the colocation with the PMS suggests that the formation channel of the cBDs is the same as the one for their more massive stellar counterparts, as expected from solar neighbourhood studies: the fragmentation and collapse of the GMC,” the authors conclude.

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

bigger: https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/541 ... 7132_o.jpg

Note: cBD is apparently "candidate brown dwarf" which I was too stupid to figure out sans googling.

[Ann]

This is a beautiful and impressive APOD, full of fascinating details. However, it reminds me of the fact that JWST is not very good at taking pictures of blue stars, and because of this, I prefer Hubble over Webb. Certainly when it comes to photographing relatively nearby nebulas, star clusters and galaxies.

I'll leave it to the rest of you to comment on this image.

Ann

[Ann]

Actually, let me amend what I said. Webb kan do stunning things with galaxies that are completely out of reach for Hubble:

NGC 1566, as seen by the James Webb Space Telescope's Mid-Infrared Instrument. Credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/Judy Schmidt.

---

So we certainly need both JWST and Hubble, but in my opinion, JWST is not a replacement for Hubble. We still need the glorious Hubble telescope and the amazing images that only Hubble can produce.

Ann

[AVAO]

Oh my goodness.
The incredible detail - the subtlies that have been revealed (again) - and the galaxies.
Oh, the galaxies!
Not much of a discussion for me on this.
And the juxtaposition of the two images is at least as inspiring as either one individually.
The old mind has been blown.

Well, the pictures are 17 years apart...
Who can find the runaway star that will soon crash into the center?

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

(...into the center of our own Milky Way galaxy, of course ,-)

[AVAO]

[...]
Note: cBD is apparently "candidate brown dwarf" which I was too stupid to figure out sans googling.

I always thought that brown dwarfs were extremely small and very difficult to see.
This also applies to the latest discoveries.
https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads ... 24f-2k.png

I find it a bit irritating that everything is different here and that they at least appear to shine just as brightly as normal stars nearby.

[Nekoninda]

A beautiful photograph, and interesting discussion. One phrase confuses me. "...emitting light so energetic that is evaporating the gas...". What does it mean to evaporate a gas, in inter-stellar space? I would have thought that such gas was already in an evaporated state.

[Ann]

Oh my goodness.
The incredible detail - the subtlies that have been revealed (again) - and the galaxies.
Oh, the galaxies!
Not much of a discussion for me on this.
And the juxtaposition of the two images is at least as inspiring as either one individually.
The old mind has been blown.

Well, the pictures are 17 years apart...
Who can find the runaway star that will soon crash into the center?

https://www-esa-int.translate.goog/ESA_ ... x_tr_hl=de

(...into the center of our own Milky Way galaxy, of course ,-)

This one?

If not, please point out the correct one to me, Jac!

Ann

[Ann]

Can't keep this wide field view of NGC 602 and friends away from you:

NGC 602 (top) and Henize 89 (left). Credit: Tom Peter, aka Astrovetteman.

And this is the only picture I have been able to find that clearly shows the position of NGC 602 in the very outskirts of the Small Magellanic Cloud!

NGC 602 in the Small Magellanic Cloud.
Credit: Astro Che, aka LtChestnut

Okay, no, there is another one too:

The Small Magellanic Cloud. NGC 602 is very near bottom,
looking like a tiny white pipe. Henize 89 is to the right of it,
looking like a blue oval. Credit: Chris Kjeldsen

Ann

[AVAO]

Oh my goodness.
The incredible detail - the subtlies that have been revealed (again) - and the galaxies.
Oh, the galaxies!
Not much of a discussion for me on this.
And the juxtaposition of the two images is at least as inspiring as either one individually.
The old mind has been blown.

Well, the pictures are 17 years apart...
Who can find the runaway star that will soon crash into the center?
https://www-esa-int.translate.goog/ESA_ ... x_tr_hl=de
(...into the center of our own Milky Way galaxy, of course ,-)

This one?
NGC 602 Comparison Hubble Webb possible runaway star.png
If not, please point out the correct one to me, Jac!
Ann

yep - congratulations ,-)

There are a lot of objects for which there are HST and JWST images with a difference of more than 10 years.
This star must be relatively close to us in the Milky Way galaxy - otherwise the change would not be so visible.

Jac