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NASAs Spitzer Peels Back Layers of Stars Explosion

Astronomers using NASAs infrared Spitzer Space Telescope have discovered that an exploded star, named Cassiopeia A, blew up in a somewhat orderly fashion, retaining much of its original onion-like layering.

Cassiopeia A – click for 800×800 image

Cassiopeia A, or Cas A for short, is what is known as a supernova remnant. The original star, about 15 to 20 times more massive than our sun, died in a cataclysmic "supernova" explosion relatively recently in our own Milky Way galaxy. Like all mature massive stars, the Cas A star was once neat and tidy, consisting of concentric shells made up of various elements. The stars outer skin consisted of lighter elements, such as hydrogen; its middle layers were lined with heavier elements like neon; and its core was stacked with the heaviest elements, such as iron.

Earlier (2004) press release on Cassiopeia A, with images: Deepest Image of Exploded Star Uncovers Bipolar Jets



Tags: astrophysics, supernova, black hole, Cassiopeia A

NASA's Spitzer Images Out-of-this-World Galaxy (7/23/09)

NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope has imaged a wild creature of the dark — a coiled galaxy with an eye-like object at its center.

The galaxy, called NGC 1097, is located 50 million light-years away. It is spiral-shaped like our Milky Way, with long, spindly arms of stars. The "eye" at the center of the galaxy is actually a monstrous black hole surrounded by a ring of stars. In this color-coded infrared view from Spitzer, the area around the invisible black hole is blue and the ring of stars, white.

The black hole is huge, about 100 million times the mass of our sun, and is feeding off gas and dust along with the occasional unlucky star. Our Milky Ways central black hole is tame by comparison, with a mass of a few million suns.

NGC 1097 – click for 1000×1000 image

More: here, here, here