The vibrant magentas and blues in this Hubble image of the barred spiral galaxy M83 reveal that the galaxy is ablaze with star formation. The galactic panorama unveils a tapestry of the drama of stellar birth and death. The galaxy, also known as the Southern Pinwheel, lies 15 million light-years away in the constellation Hydra.
This image is a composite of separate exposures acquired by the WFC3 instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope. Several filters were used to sample broad and narrow wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are:
F336W (U) – purple
F438W (B) – blue
F555W (V) + F547M (Strömgren y) – green
F657N (H-alpha) – orange
F814W (I) – red
This image is being used to support a citizen science project titled STAR DATE: M83. The primary goal is to estimate ages for approximately 3,000 star clusters. Amateur scientists will use the presence or absence of the pink hydrogen emission, the sharpness of the individual stars, and the color of the clusters to estimate ages. Participants will measure the sizes of the star clusters and any associated emission nebulae. Finally, the citizen scientists will “explore” the image, identifying a variety of objects ranging from background galaxies to supernova remnants to foreground stars.
STAR DATE: M83 is a joint collaborative effort between the Space Telescope Science Institute and Zooniverse, creators of several citizen science projects including Galaxy Zoo, Planet Hunters, and the Andromeda Project (go to www.zooniverse.org to see the full list). The M83 project is scheduled to launch on Monday, January 13, 2014. People interested in exploring this remarkable image in more detail, and in directly participating in a science project, can visit http://www.projectstardate.org.
Hubble-Magellan Composite of M83. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)
Astronomers using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope focused on the barred spiral galaxy M83, also known as the Southern Pinwheel, located 15 million light-years away. By assembling a number of Hubble images, scientists have made a mosaic of the iconic galaxy. This image shows billions of stars at various stages of life spread across 50,000 light-years.
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Filed under: Deep Space
