Webb’s Powerful Mid-Infrared Instrument Resolves Clumpy Nature of Dusty Disk
Astronomers are known for their precision, but naming celestial objects isn’t exactly their forte. Take, for instance, HD 84406, the first star observed by the James Webb Space Telescope — not the most memorable name. Similarly, galaxy cluster MACS0416, recently imaged as a deep field by Webb, isn’t winning any awards for creativity.
That said, there are exceptions. Names like the Hourglass Nebula, the Cigar Galaxy, and the Cat’s Paw Nebula stand out for their vivid imagery, inspired by their resemblance to familiar objects. The Sombrero Galaxy follows this tradition, named for its striking likeness to a broad-brimmed Mexican hat.
But names don’t always hold up under closer scrutiny. NASA’s Webb Telescope has revealed that in the mid-infrared, the signature “crown” of the Sombrero Galaxy disappears, transforming its appearance entirely. What once looked like a hat now offers a vastly different perspective.
Both the Webb and Hubble images resolve the clumpy nature of the dust that makes up the Sombrero Galaxy’s outer ring.
Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Hubble Heritage Project (STScI, AURA)
Hats Off to NASA’s Webb: Sombrero Galaxy Dazzles in New Image
A new image from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope offers a fresh perspective on the Sombrero Galaxy, known for its resemblance to a broad-brimmed Mexican hat. In this view, however, the galaxy looks more like an archery target.
Captured in mid-infrared by Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument), the iconic glowing core seen in visible-light images is subdued, revealing a smooth inner disk instead. This sharp infrared resolution also highlights intricate details in the galaxy’s outer ring, shedding light on how dust—a fundamental building block of astronomical objects—is distributed. Previously, observations from NASA’s retired Spitzer Space Telescope showed this outer ring as smooth and uniform, but Webb’s advanced imaging unveils a clumpy, textured structure for the first time.
This video compares images of the Sombrero Galaxy, also known as Messier 104 (M104). The first image is in infrared light, and was captured by the Spitzer Space Telescope. The second image shows the Webb Space Telescope’s mid-infrared look at the galaxy using the MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument). The final image shows visible light observed by the Hubble Space Telescope’s Advanced Camera for Surveys. (Note: There is no sound.) Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, IPAC, STScI
Unveiling the Dusty Secrets of the Sombrero Galaxy
In Webb’s mid-infrared view of the Sombrero galaxy, also known as Messier 104 (M104), the signature, glowing core seen in visible-light images does not shine, and instead a smooth inner disk is revealed. The sharp resolution of Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument) also brings into focus details of the galaxy’s outer ring, providing insights into how the dust, an essential building block for astronomical objects in the universe, is distributed. The galaxy’s outer ring, which appeared smooth like a blanket in imaging from NASA’s retired Spitzer Space Telescope, shows intricate clumps in the infrared for the first time.
Researchers say the clumpy nature of the dust, where MIRI detects carbon-containing molecules called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, can indicate the presence of young star-forming regions. However, unlike some galaxies studied with Webb, including Messier 82, where 10 times as many stars are born than the Milky Way galaxy, the Sombrero galaxy is not a particular hotbed of star formation. The rings of the Sombrero galaxy produce less than one solar mass of stars per year, in comparison to the Milky Way’s roughly two solar masses a year.
This image shows mid-infrared wavelengths of light that have been translated into visible-light colors. The color key shows which filters were used when collecting the light. The color of each filter name is the visible light color used to represent the infrared light that passes through that filter. The north and east compass arrows show the orientation of the image on the sky. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI
The Quiet Phenomena of the Sombrero Galaxy
Even the supermassive black hole, also known as an active galactic nucleus, at the center of the Sombrero galaxy is rather docile, even at a hefty 9-billion-solar masses. It’s classified as a low luminosity active galactic nucleus, slowly snacking on infalling material from the galaxy, while sending off a bright, relatively small, jet.
Also within the Sombrero galaxy dwell some 2,000 globular clusters, collections of hundreds of thousands of old stars held together by gravity. This type of system serves as a pseudo laboratory for astronomers to study stars — thousands of stars within one system with the same age, but varying masses and other properties is an intriguing opportunity for comparison studies.
In the MIRI image, galaxies of varying shapes and colors litter the background of space. The different colors of these background galaxies can tell astronomers about their properties, including how far away they are.
The Sombrero galaxy is around 30 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Virgo.
The Growing Demand for Webb’s Insights
Stunning images like this, and an array of discoveries in the study of exoplanets, galaxies through time, star formation, and our own solar system, are still just the beginning. Recently, scientists from all over the world applied for observation time with Webb during its fourth year of science operations, which begins in July 2025.
General Observer time with Webb is more competitive than ever. A record-breaking 2,377 proposals were submitted by the Oct. 15, 2024 deadline, requesting about 78,000 hours of observation time. This is an oversubscription rate, the ratio defining the observation hours requested versus the actual time available in one year of Webb’s operations, of around 9 to 1.
The proposals cover a wide array of science topics, with distant galaxies being among the most requested observation time, followed by exoplanet atmospheres, stars and stellar populations, then exoplanet systems.
The Space Telescope Science Institute manages the proposal and program selection process for NASA. The submissions will now be evaluated by a Telescope Allocation Committee, a group of hundreds of members of the worldwide astronomical community, on a dual-anonymous basis, with selections announced in March 2025.
While time on Webb is limited, data from all of Webb’s programs is publicly archived, immediately after it’s taken, or after a time of exclusive access, in the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes (MAST) so it can be used by anyone in the world.
The James Webb Space Telescope (Webb) is the world’s most advanced space science observatory, designed to explore the universe’s deepest mysteries. Webb is transforming our understanding of the cosmos by studying our solar system, observing distant exoplanets, and investigating the origins and structures of the universe. As an international collaboration, Webb is led by NASA with key contributions from the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). Its cutting-edge instruments and unparalleled sensitivity make Webb a cornerstone of modern astronomy, uncovering insights into the fundamental nature of the universe and our place within it.
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2 Comments
I am very familiar with the previously celebrated photos of the Sombrero Galaxy, and I have to admit that the newer photos are underwhelming by comparison. The older photos that you can easily find online inspire reverie as no other space image can.
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has once again shown its incredible capabilities by revealing new details about celestial objects. While astronomers may not always have the most creative names for stars and clusters like HD 84406 and MACS0416, there are some exceptions my fed loan like the Hourglass Nebula, the Cigar Galaxy, and the Cat’s Paw Nebula. The Sombrero Galaxy, named for its hat-like appearance, is one such example.