The
Infrared Visible Andromeda
From
NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day
This remarkable synthetic
color composite image was assembled from archives of visible light and infrared
astronomy image data.
The
field of view spans the Andromeda Galaxy (M31), a massive spiral a mere 2.5
million light-years away.
In
fact, with over twice the diameter of our own Milky Way, Andromeda is the largest
nearby galaxy.
Andromeda's
population of bright young blue stars lie along its sweeping spiral arms, with
the telltale reddish glow of star forming regions traced in space- and
ground-based visible
light data.
But infrared
data from the Spitzer Space Telescope, also blended directly into the
detailed composite's red and green color channels, highlight the lumpy dust
lanes warmed by the young stars as they wind even closer to the galaxy's core.
Otherwise
invisible at optical wavelengths, the warm dust takes on orange hues. Two
smaller companion galaxies, M110 (below) and M32 (above) are also
included in the frame.
 |
Image Credit: Subaru Telescope (NAOJ), Hubble Space Telescope |
Mayall 4M Telescope (KPNO, NOAO), Digitized Sky Survey, Spitzer Space Telescope
Processing & Copyright: Robert Gendler
Processing & Copyright: Robert Gendler
