CNN —The James Webb Space Telescope has captured a surprising new view of a long-studied galactic neighbor, the Sombrero galaxy, revealing a perspective that looks quite different from the wide-brimmed Mexican hat for which it was named.
Hubble: Messier 104, The Sombrero Galaxy Looking like a broad-brimmed Mexican hat, the “Sombrero” galaxy, M104, is a spiral galaxy seen nearly edge-on.
NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI The Sombrero Galaxy is imaged in visible light by the Hubble Space Telescope, left, and in mid-infrared light by the James Webb Space Telescope’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument).
But the Sombrero galaxy is quiet in terms of star formation compared with other galaxies such as Messier 82.
The Webb telescope, launched in December 2021, will begin its fourth year of observing the universe in July.
Persons:
James Webb, Pierre Méchain, Méchain, Charles Messier, NASA’s, Webb
Organizations:
CNN, Telescope, Hubble, Spitzer, NASA, Hubble Heritage, James Webb Space Telescope, micron, ESA, CSA, Way
Locations:
MIRI