NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has captured images of one of the earliest supernovae ever seen, with features similar to grains and knots found in a piece of wood.
“Once upon a time, the core of a massive star collapsed, creating a shock wave that shot outward and tore the star apart along the way,” NASA said on its website. “When the shock wave reached the star’s surface, it burst, generating a short, intense pulse of X-rays and ultraviolet light that traveled outward into surrounding space.”
Now, almost 350 years later, scientists are seeing the aftermath of the light pulse that reaches interstellar material and makes it glow.
The infrared glow created was captured by JWST and revealed details resembling knots and whorls in wood grain.
POWERFUL WEBB TELESCOPE CATCHES THE MOST FAR KNOWN GALAXY, SCIENTISTS SAY
This background image of the area around supernova remnant Cassiopeia A was released in 2008 by NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope. By taking multiple images of this area with Spitzer over three years, researchers were able to examine a number of light echoes. Now NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has imaged some of these light echoes in much greater detail. Insets on the lower right show an epoch of Webb observations, while the inset on the left shows a Webb image of the central supernova remnant released in 2023. (Spitzer Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Y. Kim (University of Arizona/University of Chicago). Cassiopeia A Inset: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Danny Milisavljevic (Purdue University), Ilse De Looze (UGent) , Tea Temim (Princeton University). Light ultrasound input: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, J. Jencson (Caltech/IPAC).)
‘Even if a star dies, its light remains –echo through the cosmos. It’s been an extraordinary three years since we launched NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. Every image, every discovery presents a portrait not only of the majesty of the universe, but also of the power of the NASA team and the promise of international partnerships. This groundbreaking mission, NASA’s largest international space science collaboration, is a true testament to NASA’s ingenuity, teamwork and commitment to excellence,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “What a privilege it has been to oversee this monumental effort, shaped by the tireless dedication of thousands of scientists and engineers around the world. This latest image beautifully captures Webb’s lasting legacy: a keyhole into the past and a mission that will inspire generations to come.”
While beautiful in nature, the observations also give astronomers the opportunity to map the three-dimensional structure of interstellar dust and gas for the first time.
“We were quite shocked to see this level of detail,” said Jacob Jencson of Caltech/IPAC in Pasadena, the science program’s principal investigator.
Josh Peek of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore is also a member of the team and said they see layers similar to that of an onion.
POWERFUL WEBB TELESCOPE SPIES SPECTACULAR STARBIRD CLuster BEYOND THE MILKY WAY
These glittering cosmic curtains show interstellar gas and dust heated by the flashbulb explosion of a long-ago supernova. (NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, J. Jencson (Caltech/IPAC))
“We think every dense, dusty area we see, and most of the ones we don’t see, looks like this on the inside,” he said. “We’ve just never been able to look inside it before.”
The images produced by the JWST near-infrared camera (NIRCam) highlight a phenomenon called light echo, NASA said. This phenomenon occurs when a star explodes or erupts before flashing light into the surrounding dust masses and shining them.
The echoes of visible light are caused when light reflects off interstellar material, while the echoes at infrared wavelengths are caused when the dust is heated by energetic radiation, causing it to glow.
Scientists focused on a slight echo previously observed by retired NASA members Spitzer Space Telescopeand it is one of dozens found near remnants of the supernova Cassiopeia A.
FUSION OF HUGE BLACK HOLES FROM THE EARLY UNIVERSE DISCOVERED BY WEBB TELESCOPE, SCIENTISTS SAY
FILE – In this April 13, 2017 photo provided by NASA, technicians lift the mirror of the James Webb Space Telescope using a crane at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. (Laura Betz/NASA via AP, file)
The Webb images show densely packed sheets, with filaments showing structures on what NASA called “remarkably small scales,” of about 400 astronomical units, or less than one-hundredth of a light-year. One astronomical unit is the average distance between Earth and the Sun, and Neptune’s orbit is 60 astronomical units in diameter.
“We didn’t know that the interstellar medium had structures on such a small scale, let alone that it was sheet-like,” says Peek.
Scientists compared the discovery to a medical CT scan.
“We took three slices at three different times, which will allow us to study the real 3D structure. It will completely change the way we study the interstellar medium,” said Armin Rest of the Space Telescope Science Institute, and member of the team . said.
The team’s findings will be presented this week at the 245th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Washington, D.C.
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The Webb Telescope, the successor to Hubble and the largest telescope ever launched into space, is a joint project of NASA and the European Space Agency.
