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James Webb space telescope has made remarkable progress by observing the universe further away in space and time than any previous telescope. For the first time, the James Webb telescope shows its shape Mars.
The image he produced shows Mars in a very different light because it uses infrared. This latest photo of Mars gives us new information about the Red Planet that we cannot see with the naked eye.
Since heat releases infrared light (what we call thermal radiation), much of this information relates to the temperature of Mars. But there is other interesting information that may be
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Quoted by Science noticeis the most powerful telescope ever launched into space, designed to be sensitive enough to detect very faint light from the most distant objects in the Universe.
Therefore, compared to the photos Mars that other telescopes have taken, photos of Mars taken James Webb space telescope it seems “burning” like a furnace.
To avoid the excessive saturation that usually results from this brightness, the scientists who make observations and process the data must use special techniques to compensate. The exposure time is very short and the data analysis is customizable.
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(Left) Simulated Mars showing the features visible in the telescope: Top right, the 2.1 micron image shows surface features such as craters and dust. Bottom right, the 4.3 micron image shows a heat map of the Martian atmosphere, heated by the Sun. (NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Mars JWST / GTO team) Photo: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI , Mars JWST / GTO– |
The result proved to be worth it. Map of the side of Mars as seen by a telescope in two wavelengths of infrared light. At 2.1 microns, the image is dominated by sunlight reflecting off the Martian surface. So what we see is very similar to what we might see at optical wavelengths.
At 4.3 microns, the image is dominated by thermal radiation from the Martian atmosphere, the brightest of which the Sun is almost parallel to the planet. This area is generally where the planet’s atmosphere is warmest.
But heat isn’t the only source of infrared light at these wavelengths. A dark spot can be seen down to the right of the brightest region in this wavelength which is actually produced by features on the Martian surface.
This is a large impact basin called Hellas Planitia, one of the largest craters on Mars and the entire Solar System. The atmosphere on Mars is made up of 96% carbon dioxide which absorbs light. This atmosphere is dense enough above Hellas Planitia to have an observable effect in the infrared wavelengths.
 Spectrum obtained from the James Webb telescope, showing the chemical footprints of CO, CO2 and H20. Photo: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Mars JWST / GTO— |
“This isn’t really a thermal effect on Hellas,” said astronomer Geronimo Villanueva of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, who designed the observations.
“The Hellas basin has a lower altitude and therefore experiences higher air pressure. That higher pressure leads to the suppression of thermal emissions over a certain wavelength range. [4.1-4,4 mikron] due to an effect called pressure expansion. It would be very interesting to separate these competing effects in the data. “
It refers to the near infrared spectrum Marswhich shows a finer and more detailed breakdown of the composition of the planet’s atmosphere and surface, as certain wavelengths are attenuated or amplified by the absorption and re-emission of light by certain molecules.
So far, scientists have been able to easily identify carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and water in the Martian atmosphere. However, the analysis is ongoing and we won’t know what details this new data will reveal until the team is ready to release the results.
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