File:Clash of the Titans (potm2306a).tiff
From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Size of this JPG preview of this TIF file: 715 × 600 pixels. Other resolutions: 286 × 240 pixels | 572 × 480 pixels | 916 × 768 pixels | 1,221 × 1,024 pixels | 2,442 × 2,048 pixels | 4,206 × 3,528 pixels.
Original file (4,206 × 3,528 pixels, file size: 84.95 MB, MIME type: image/tiff)
File information
Structured data
Captions
Summary[edit]
DescriptionClash of the Titans (potm2306a).tiff |
English: The peculiar galaxy NGC 3256 dominates this image from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope. This Milky Way-sized galaxy lies about 120 million light-years away in the constellation Vela, and is a denizen of the Hydra-Centaurus Supercluster.NGC 3256 may seem peaceful, a swirl of tightly entwined spiral arms set in a hazy cloud of light, but this image shows the aftermath of an ancient cosmic clash. This distorted galaxy is the wreckage of a head-on collision between two equally massive spiral galaxies which astronomers estimate to have met around 500 million years ago. The tumultuous past of NGC 3256 is captured in the long tendrils of shining dust and stars which extend outwards from the main body of the galaxy. These luminous tendrils are called tidal tails, and are studded with young stars which were formed as gas and dust from the two galaxies collided. The striking red wisps spread across the galaxy trace out lanes of dust. Excited by radiation from the galaxy's stars, small dust grains emit infrared light that is captured in astonishing detail by Webb's instruments.If you were asked to picture a galaxy collision, you might picture stars careening into one another with catastrophically explosive results. In reality, the spaces between the stars in a galaxy are vast; when galaxies collide, their clouds of stars pass through one another and mingle like two clouds of smoke. The gas and dust in colliding galaxies does interact, however, and with spectacular results. The galactic collision that created NGC 3256 triggered a luminous burst of star formation that can be seen in the brightest portions of this image. These infant stars shine most brightly at infrared wavelengths, light which can penetrate through obscuring dust in the galaxy, and which makes the stars perfect subjects for Webb.This observation is one of several which take a detailed look at the physics of star formation and black hole growth in nearby merging galaxies, hoping to transform astronomers' understanding of galactic evolution. Capturing a selection of luminous infrared galaxies like NGC 3256 will help the astronomical community to understand how Webb can unravel the complex histories of nearby star-forming galaxies.This image contains data from Webb’s Near-InfraRed Camera and Mid-InfraRed Instrument, which — as the names suggest — capture NGC 3256 in stunning detail at infrared wavelengths. Previous observations of NGC 3256 with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope revealed this cosmic collision at visible wavelengths, and Hubble and Webb observations are shown side-by-side using the slider tool here.[Image Description: A large, face-on spiral galaxy. The core is radiating very brightly. Streaks of dust glow intensely red, in the centre and across most of the galaxy. This gas is surrounded by a dark grey halo made of the galaxy’s stars. The halo stretches out into a tidal tail at the upper-left, and another at the bottom. Small stars and galaxies surround the spiral galaxy, on a black background.]Links |
Date | 3 July 2023 (upload date) |
Source | Clash of the Titans |
Author | ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, L. Armus, A. Evans |
Other versions |
|
Licensing[edit]
ESA/Webb images, videos and web texts are released by the ESA under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license and may on a non-exclusive basis be reproduced without fee provided they are clearly and visibly credited. Detailed conditions are below; see the ESA copyright statement for full information. For images created by NASA or on the webbtelescope.org website, use the {{PD-Webb}} tag.
Conditions:
Notes:
|
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.
Attribution: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, L. Armus, A. Evans
- You are free:
- to share – to copy, distribute and transmit the work
- to remix – to adapt the work
- Under the following conditions:
- attribution – You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
File history
Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time.
Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
current | 10:00, 3 July 2023 | 4,206 × 3,528 (84.95 MB) | OptimusPrimeBot (talk | contribs) | #Spacemedia - Upload of https://esawebb.org/media/archives/images/original/potm2306a.tif via Commons:Spacemedia |
You cannot overwrite this file.
File usage on Commons
There are no pages that use this file.
Metadata
This file contains additional information such as Exif metadata which may have been added by the digital camera, scanner, or software program used to create or digitize it. If the file has been modified from its original state, some details such as the timestamp may not fully reflect those of the original file. The timestamp is only as accurate as the clock in the camera, and it may be completely wrong.
Width | 4,206 px |
---|---|
Height | 3,528 px |
Bits per component |
|
Compression scheme | Uncompressed |
Pixel composition | RGB |
Image data location | 26,264 |
Orientation | Normal |
Number of components | 3 |
Number of rows per strip | 3,528 |
Bytes per compressed strip | 89,032,608 |
Horizontal resolution | 254 dpi |
Vertical resolution | 254 dpi |
Data arrangement | chunky format |
Software used | Adobe Photoshop 24.4 (Windows) |
File change date and time | 02:56, 27 June 2023 |
Color space | Uncalibrated |