CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The James Webb Space Telescope has captured striking images of 19 spiral galaxies near our own Milky Way, shedding new light on star formation, galaxy structure, and evolution.
These images, released by the Physics at High Angular resolution in Nearby GalaxieS (PHANGS) project team, reveal the closest galaxy, NGC5068, to be about 15 million light years from Earth. The farthest, NGC1365, is approximately 60 million light years away. This provides a unique window into the dynamics of spiral galaxies at varying distances from our own.
Launched in 2021 and commencing its data collection in 2022, the James Webb Space Telescope differs from the Hubble Space Telescope by primarily observing the universe in the infrared spectrum. This allows for a deeper look into the earliest stages of star formation, as well as the structure of galaxies that was previously obscured by dust and gas.
The new observations have provided scientists with a clearer understanding of the formation of stars and planets within galaxies. According to University of Oxford astronomer Thomas Williams, the Webb telescope’s ability to penetrate dusty clouds that block visible wavelengths has revealed previously unknown details about the early phases of star formation.
Furthermore, the images offer insights into the structure of spiral galaxies, revealing that about half of them have a bar-shaped structure emanating from the center. This challenges the commonly held belief that galaxies form from the inside out, suggesting a more complex evolutionary process.
By building on the observations of the Hubble Space Telescope, the Webb telescope has enabled astronomers to overcome previous limitations in studying the dynamics of galaxies due to the obstructive nature of dust. This groundbreaking development opens up new avenues for understanding the complexities of star and galaxy formation.