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Milky Way

Infrared light allows astronomers to peer deeply into the disk of our own Milky Way galaxy, seeing areas that are obscured by dust in visible light.

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  • Stars and dust glow alike as we peer deep into the Milky Way in near and mid infrared light
    Mwplane-herschel
    Stars and dust glow alike as we peer deep into the Milky Way in near and mid infrared light
    Mwplane-spitzer
    • Mwplane-spitzer
      Mid Infrared
    • Mwplane-herschel
      Far Infrared
  • At these long infrared wavelengths the hottest dust glows blue, while the coldest is red
    Gc-mipsgal
    At these long infrared wavelengths the hottest dust glows blue, while the coldest is red
    Gc-glimpse
    At these long infrared wavelengths the hottest dust glows blue, while the coldest is red
    Gc-2mass
    At these long infrared wavelengths the hottest dust glows blue, while the coldest is red
    Gc-herschel
    • Gc-herschel
      Far Infrared
    • Gc-2mass
      Near Infrared
    • Gc-glimpse
      Infrared
    • Gc-mipsgal
      Mid Infrared

Southern Milky Way

Looking at an otherwise normal patch of the Milky Way that falls within the Southern constellation Crux, we see a complex array of dust that is strewn through interstellar space, along with some regions that are furiously forming stars.

Including near and mid infrared light we see both our Galaxy's stars as well as the patchy clouds of dust and the bright areas that are forming stars. The view shifts subtly when pushing to longer, far infrared wavelegths. New, unseen regions of cold dust, falling outside the warmer regions, become visible in red. Some of the desest and coldest filaments of dust, opaque in the first image, themselves glow in the second.

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Cool Cosmos is an IPAC website. Based on Government Sponsored Research NAS7-03001 and NNN12AA01C.