NGC 1433 (MIRI Image)

NGC 1433 (MIRI Image)

This image taken by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope shows one of a total of 19 galaxies targeted for study by the Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby Galaxies (PHANGS) collaboration. Nearby barred spiral galaxy NGC 1433 takes on a completely new look when observed by Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI). 

NGC 1433’s spiral arms are littered with evidence of extremely young stars releasing energy and, in some cases, blowing out the gas and dust of the interstellar medium. Areas that appear dark and dim in optical imaging light up under Webb’s infrared eye. This is due to clumps of dust and gas in the interstellar medium absorbing the light from forming stars and emitting it back out in the infrared.

Webb’s image of NGC 1433 is a strong display of how dynamic processes associated with forming stars influence the larger structure of an entire galaxy.

At the center of the galaxy, a tight, bright core featuring a unique double ring structure shines in exquisite detail with Webb’s extreme resolution. In this case, that ‘double ring’ is actually tightly wrapped spiral arms that wind into an oval shape along the galaxy’s bar.

NGC 1433 is a Seyfert galaxy, which are typically relatively close to Earth and has a supermassive black hole at the center eating material at a high rate. The brightness and lack of dust in the MIRI image of NGC 1433 could hint at a recent collision with another galaxy.

NGC 1433 lies over 46 million light-years away from Earth in the constellation Horologium.

MIRI was contributed by ESA and NASA, with the instrument designed and built by a consortium of nationally funded European Institutes (The MIRI European Consortium) and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in partnership with the University of Arizona.

Credits

Science

NASA, ESA, CSA, Janice Lee (NSF's NOIRLab)

Image Processing

Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

About The Object
Object Name NGC 1433, PGC 13586
Object Description Barred spiral galaxy with a double ring structure
R.A. Position 03:42:00.82
Dec. Position -47:13:28.56
Constellation Horologium
Distance 46 million light-years 
About The Data
Data Description This image was created with Webb data from proposal: (J. Lee).
Instrument MIRI
Exposure Dates 19 Jan 2023
Filters F770W, F1000W, F1130, 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 wide 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:   Blue: F770W, Green: F1000W+F1130W, Red: F2100W
Compass Image A large galaxy takes up the entirety of the image. The image is mostly black with a bright, glowing oval core at the center. The core is mostly bright white, but there are also swirling, detailed structures that resemble water circling a drain. There is white and light blue colored dust that emanates from the core’s center, but it is tightly contained to the core. There is black space between the core and glowing dust of the outer oval rings. The rings are wispy and highlight filaments of dust around cavernous black bubbles. The dust in the outer rings contains dots that are navy blue, pinkish, reddish, and white. Throughout, there is also a smattering of background galaxies seen as small red and greenish dots.
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
  • Proposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
  • Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.
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.

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