ALMA view of an explosive event in Orion
Stellar explosions are most often associated with supernovae, the spectacular deaths of stars. But new ALMA observations of the Orion Nebula complex provide insights into explosions at the other end of the stellar life cycle, star birth. Astronomers captured these dramatic images of the remains of a 500-year-old explosion as they explored the firework-like debris from the birth of a group of massive stars, demonstrating that star formation can be a violent and explosive process too. The colours in the ALMA data represent the relative Doppler shifting of the millimetre-wavelength light emitted by carbon monoxide gas. The blue colour in the ALMA data represents gas approaching at the highest speeds; the red colour is from gas moving toward us more slowly.
Credit:ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), J. Bally
About the Image
Id: | eso1711b |
Type: | Observation |
Release date: | 7 April 2017, 15:00 |
Related releases: | eso1711 |
Size: | 1945 x 2500 px |
About the Object
Type: | Milky Way : Star : Circumstellar Material |
Constellation: | Orion |
Category: | Stars |
Wallpapers
Coordinates
Position (RA): | 5 35 15.00 |
Position (Dec): | -5° 21' 46.63" |
Field of view: | 2.89 x 3.71 arcminutes |
Orientation: | North is -0.0° left of vertical |
Colours & filters
Band | Wavelength | Telescope |
---|---|---|
Millimeter 216-233 GHz | 1.3 mm | Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array Band 6 |