NOEMA (Northern Extended Millimeter Array), the most powerful millimeter radio telescope of the Northern Hemisphere, has unveiled its first astronomical image: a unique and spectacular view of a previously unknown region of extreme star formation in the ‘Medusa merger’ – a luminous collision of two galaxies at more than 100 million light years from Earth.
The multi-wavelength image shows the ‘Eye of Medusa’ (orange) located directly below the black hole at the center of NGC 4149 (white and green).
The observations, conducted by IRAM using the new NOEMA observatory in the French Alps, reveal a giant region (about 500 light years across) of recently formed massive stars at the center of the ‘Eye of Medusa’, the central gas-rich region of the Medusa merger. The stars are still wrapped in their dusty birth clouds and completely hidden from view in visible light.
Other observatories have previously mapped the Medusa merger but none had detected the existence of this region of high-density gas in the ‘Eye’ until now. The new discovery has not only proven its existence, but also has implications for our understanding of the origins of the Universe and will influence future investigative techniques.
More http://bit.ly/1en46OC
'via Blog this'
No comments:
Post a Comment