Andrew Yee[_1_]
May 16th 07, 05:28 PM
Public Affairs Office
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Cambridge, Massachusetts
For more information, contact:
David A. Aguilar
Director of Public Affairs
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
617-495-7462
Christine Pulliam
Public Affairs Specialist
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
617-495-7463
For Release: Tuesday, May 03, 2007
Release No.: 2007-12
GALEX Completes Four Star-Studded Years in Space
Note: This release is being issued jointly with GALEX/Caltech.
Cambridge, MA -- NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer is celebrating its fourth
year in space with some of M81's "hottest" stars.
In a new ultraviolet image, the magnificent M81 spiral galaxy is shown at
the center. The orbiting observatory spies the galaxy's "sizzling young
starlets" as wisps of bluish-white swirling around a central golden glow.
The tints of gold at M81's center come from a "senior citizen" population of
smoldering stars.
"This is a spectacular view of M81," says Dr. John Huchra of the
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. "When we proposed to observe
this galaxy with GALEX we hoped to see globular clusters, open clusters, and
young stars ... this view is everything that we were hoping for."
The image is one of thousands gathered so far by GALEX, which launched April
28, 2003. This mission uses ultraviolet wavelengths to measure the history
of star formation 80 percent of the way back to the Big Bang.
The large fluffy bluish-white material to the left of M81 is a neighboring
galaxy called Holmberg IX. This galaxy is practically invisible to the
unaided eye. However, it is illuminated brilliantly in GALEX's wide
ultraviolet "eyes." Its ultraviolet colors show that it is actively forming
young stars. The bluish-white fuzz in the space surrounding M81 and Holmberg
IX is new star formation triggered by gravitational interactions between the
two galaxies. Huchra notes that the active star formation in Holmberg IX is
a surprise, and says that more research needs to be done in light of the new
findings from GALEX.
"Some astronomers suspect that the galaxy Holmberg IX is the result of a
galactic interaction between M81 and another neighboring galaxy M82," says
Huchra. "This particular galaxy is especially important because there are a
lot of galaxies like Holmberg IX around our Milky Way galaxy. By
understanding how Holmberg IX came to be, we hope to understand how all the
little galaxies surrounding the Milky Way developed."
"Four years after GALEX's launch, the spacecraft is performing
magnificently. The mission results have been simply amazing as it helps us
to unlock the secrets of galaxies, the building blocks of our universe,"
says Kerry Erickson, GALEX project manager.
M81 and Holmberg IX are located approximately 12 million light-years away in
the northern constellation Ursa Major. In addition to leading the GALEX
observations of M81, Huchra and his team also took observations of the
region with NASA's Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes. By combining all
these views of M81, Huchra hopes to gain a better understanding about how
M81 has developed into the spiral galaxy we see today.
The California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., leads the Galaxy
Evolution Explorer mission and is responsible for science operations and
data analysis. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, also in Pasadena, manages
the mission and built the science instrument. The mission was developed
under NASA's Explorers Program managed by the Goddard Space Flight Center,
Greenbelt, Md. Researchers from South Korea and France collaborated on this
mission.
Note to editors: Images to accompany this release are online at
http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/press/2007/pr200712_images.html
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Cambridge, Massachusetts
For more information, contact:
David A. Aguilar
Director of Public Affairs
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
617-495-7462
Christine Pulliam
Public Affairs Specialist
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
617-495-7463
For Release: Tuesday, May 03, 2007
Release No.: 2007-12
GALEX Completes Four Star-Studded Years in Space
Note: This release is being issued jointly with GALEX/Caltech.
Cambridge, MA -- NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer is celebrating its fourth
year in space with some of M81's "hottest" stars.
In a new ultraviolet image, the magnificent M81 spiral galaxy is shown at
the center. The orbiting observatory spies the galaxy's "sizzling young
starlets" as wisps of bluish-white swirling around a central golden glow.
The tints of gold at M81's center come from a "senior citizen" population of
smoldering stars.
"This is a spectacular view of M81," says Dr. John Huchra of the
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. "When we proposed to observe
this galaxy with GALEX we hoped to see globular clusters, open clusters, and
young stars ... this view is everything that we were hoping for."
The image is one of thousands gathered so far by GALEX, which launched April
28, 2003. This mission uses ultraviolet wavelengths to measure the history
of star formation 80 percent of the way back to the Big Bang.
The large fluffy bluish-white material to the left of M81 is a neighboring
galaxy called Holmberg IX. This galaxy is practically invisible to the
unaided eye. However, it is illuminated brilliantly in GALEX's wide
ultraviolet "eyes." Its ultraviolet colors show that it is actively forming
young stars. The bluish-white fuzz in the space surrounding M81 and Holmberg
IX is new star formation triggered by gravitational interactions between the
two galaxies. Huchra notes that the active star formation in Holmberg IX is
a surprise, and says that more research needs to be done in light of the new
findings from GALEX.
"Some astronomers suspect that the galaxy Holmberg IX is the result of a
galactic interaction between M81 and another neighboring galaxy M82," says
Huchra. "This particular galaxy is especially important because there are a
lot of galaxies like Holmberg IX around our Milky Way galaxy. By
understanding how Holmberg IX came to be, we hope to understand how all the
little galaxies surrounding the Milky Way developed."
"Four years after GALEX's launch, the spacecraft is performing
magnificently. The mission results have been simply amazing as it helps us
to unlock the secrets of galaxies, the building blocks of our universe,"
says Kerry Erickson, GALEX project manager.
M81 and Holmberg IX are located approximately 12 million light-years away in
the northern constellation Ursa Major. In addition to leading the GALEX
observations of M81, Huchra and his team also took observations of the
region with NASA's Spitzer and Hubble space telescopes. By combining all
these views of M81, Huchra hopes to gain a better understanding about how
M81 has developed into the spiral galaxy we see today.
The California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., leads the Galaxy
Evolution Explorer mission and is responsible for science operations and
data analysis. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, also in Pasadena, manages
the mission and built the science instrument. The mission was developed
under NASA's Explorers Program managed by the Goddard Space Flight Center,
Greenbelt, Md. Researchers from South Korea and France collaborated on this
mission.
Note to editors: Images to accompany this release are online at
http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/press/2007/pr200712_images.html