The distinguishing feature of the new image is a bright six-pointed star that lines up perfectly with the center of the galaxy.
The Webb Space Telescope has sent Earth an image of the spiral galaxy NGC 7469, which is located 220 million light-years away in the constellation Pegasus. This image shows a bright six-pointed star, which can be called the perfect symbol of Christmas. ScienceAlert.
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The galaxy NGC 7469, shown in the new Webb image, is about 90,000 light-years in diameter, making it slightly smaller than our own Milky Way. Also visible in the photo is NGC 7469’s companion galaxy IC 5283, which is partially visible in the lower left of the image.
The Webb Telescope took this image of the spiral galaxy NGC 7469 as part of a study by scientists who are trying to understand the nature of the emergence of new stars in this region of space, the growth of supermassive black holes, and how galaxies gravitationally interact and merge together.
Due to the fact that the galaxy NGC 7469 is in front of us, you can see the details of its structure, in particular the amazing spiral arms and a very bright center. At the center of this galaxy is an active core with a supermassive black hole, which is surrounded by matter falling into it. It is these gases and dust that emit a lot of bright light when heated, visible in the photo.
Photo: NASA
As for the large six-pointed star, which is almost the main feature of the new Webb image, it is not a real space object, but an image artifact known as a diffraction burst caused by light from the center of the galaxy. This is actually a pattern that occurs when light bends around the main mirror of a space telescope.
According to scientists, at a distance of about 1,500 light-years from the center of the galaxy, there is a bright ring in which rapid star formation is taking place. Because NGC 7469 is so visible, scientists can better understand the connection between this ring of star formation and the active galactic nucleus.
Scientists believe such observations by Webb will provide a better understanding of how the process of forming new stars occurs and how it is connected with the center of the galaxy in objects such as NGC 7469. Astronomers have found that highly ionized diffuse atomic gas constantly escapes from the center of the galaxy and flies from a speed of about 6.5 million kilometers per hour. But these emissions do not appear to affect the nova ring.
Photo: NASA
Both galaxies, NGC 7469 and IC 5283, are in constant gravitational interaction and their merger is in progress. The pair of galaxies have a common name – Arp 298 and a larger galaxy extracts gas from a smaller neighbor and in this way this substance helps create new stars.
Focus already wrote that scientists officially confirmed the fact that the Webb Space Telescope nevertheless discovered the farthest galaxy in the universe.
Same Focus wrote that in the Milky Way galaxy satellite, scientists are trying to detect supermassive black hole, which should be there. This hole could change astronomers’ understanding of how galaxies evolve.
