James Webb Space Telescope Feed Post

Question Mark Galaxy - Hubble and Webb

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has also observed the galaxy cluster MACS-J0417.5-1154, but the dusty red galaxy that appears multiple times to form a question mark shape is much more prominent in the Webb image. The infrared light that Webb detects is better able to pass through the cosmic dust of its home galaxy to reach the telescope. Astronomers used Hubble’s ultraviolet observations to help determine where star formation is happening in both the red galaxy and its close companion, a face-on spiral galaxy. Technical information about the images: The Hubble image is a composite of separate exposures acquired by the ACS instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope. Several filters were used to sample various 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: Blue= F435W, Green=F606W, Red= F814W. Likewise, the Webb image is a composite of separate exposures acquired by the NIRCam instrument. 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: Blue: F090W Green: F150W Red: F444W Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Vicente Estrada-Carpenter (Saint Mary's University) Image Description: The same region of space in side-by-side images. The left image is labeled “Hubble” and the galaxies shown have an overall yellow tone and haze. The image on the right is labeled “Webb.” In the center of that image, several images of an elongated red galaxy for a shape like the top of a question mark. In comparison it’s clear that some of the features creating the question mark shape are present in the left-hand image as well, but probably wouldn’t be noticed if that image stood alone. The right-hand image is more colorful and defined than the image on the left, with shades of white, red, and a little blue. Image & Description by NASA