The disc around IRAS 13481-6124

Astronomers have been able to obtain the first image of a dusty disc closely encircling a massive baby star, providing direct evidence that massive stars do form in the same way as their smaller brethren —and closing an enduring debate.In order to discover and understand the properties of this disc, the astronomers employed ESO’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). By combining the light from three of the VLTI’s 1.8-metre Auxiliary Telescopes with the AMBER instrument, this facility allows astronomers to see details equivalent to those a telescope with a mirror of 85 metres in diameter would see. The resulting resolution is about 2.4 milliarcseconds, which is equivalent to picking out the head of a screw on the International Space Station.

Credit:

ESO/S. Kraus

About the Image

Id:eso1029b
Type:Observation
Release date:14 July 2010, 19:00
Related releases:eso1029
Size:800 x 800 px

About the Object

Name:IRAS 13481-6124
Type:Milky Way : Star : Circumstellar Material : Disk
Milky Way : Star : Evolutionary Stage : Young Stellar Object
Distance:10000 light years
Category:Stars

Image Formats

Large JPEG
25.6 KB
Screensize JPEG
28.7 KB

Zoomable


Wallpapers

1024x768
30.5 KB
1280x1024
41.2 KB
1600x1200
54.9 KB
1920x1200
66.3 KB
2048x1536
79.1 KB

Colours & filters

BandTelescope
InfraredVery Large Telescope
AMBER