2024-04-10 12:10:10
This is the dwarf irregular galaxy “I Zwicky 18 (I Zw 18)” located approximately 59 million light-years away in the direction of the constellation Ursa Major. It was first observed by astronomer Fritz Zwicky in the 1930s. A dwarf galaxy is a small galaxy, about 1/100th the size of the Milky Way, and is made up of several billion stars. Dwarf irregular galaxies are dwarf galaxies in which stars and gas are irregularly distributed.
[â–˛Dwarfirregulargalaxy”IZwicky18(IZw18)”observedbytheJamesWebbSpaceTelescope’sNearInfraredCamera(NIRCam)(Credit:ESA/WebbNASACSAAHirschauerMMeixneretal)】
According to the European Space Agency (ESA), there are two large regions at the center of I Zw 18 that are experiencing starbursts, where large amounts of stars are formed over a short period of time. Around it, bubble-like structures of gas heated by stellar winds and ultraviolet radiation emitted by young, hot stars can be seen as pale brown filaments. It appears that the star formation activity of I Zw 18 may have been caused by interaction with the companion galaxy shown at the bottom of the image.
This image was created based on data obtained by the near-infrared camera (NIRCam) of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Because the Webb Space Telescope primarily observes at infrared wavelengths that cannot be seen by the human eye, the colors of published images are colored according to the filters used during acquisition.
According to ESA, I Zw 18 is an interesting observational target because it has a low content of elements heavier than helium (collectively referred to as metals or heavy elements in astronomy), making it one of the lowest in the Milky Way galaxy. It is said that it has become. The Webb Space Telescope’s observations of I Zw 18 were conducted as part of an effort to study the life cycle of dust produced by stars.
The image at the beginning was published by ESA as “Webb Space Telescope Image of the Month” on March 26, 2024.
Source
- ESA/Webb – A duo of starbursts in I Zwicky 18
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