Shells of cosmic dust created by the interaction of binary stars appear like tree rings around Wolf-Rayet 140. The remarkable regularity of the shells’ spacing indicates that they form like clockwork during the stars’ eight-year orbit cycle, when the two members of the binary make their closest approach to one another. In this image, blue, green, and red were assigned to Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) data at 7.7, 15, and 21 microns (F770W, F1500W, and F2100W filters, respectively).
Credits
Image
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, NASA-JPL, Caltech
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | WR 140 |
| Object Description | Wolf-Rayet Star |
| R.A. Position | 20:20:27.98 |
| Dec. Position | +43:51:16.28 |
| Constellation | Cygnus |
| Distance | 5,600 light-years |
| Dimensions | Image is about 2 arcmin across (about 3 light-years) |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | This image was created from JWST data from proposal: (R. Lau) |
| Instrument | JWST>MIRI |
| Exposure Dates | 27 Jul 2022 |
| Filters | F770W, F1500W, F2100W |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | These images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by the James Webb Space Telescope using the MIRI instrument. Several filters were used to sample different infraraed wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Red: F2100W Green: F1500W Blue: F770W |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
