Dwarf Irregular Galaxy Bursts into Existence with Stunning Newborn Stars.

 

Dwarf Irregular Galaxy Bursts into Existence with Stunning Newborn Stars.

Credit: Images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by the the Hubble Space Telescope Nasa

In this festive image captured by the Hubble Space Telescope, the billion stars within galaxy UGC 8091 resemble a dazzling snow globe. This dwarf galaxy, located approximately 7 million light-years away in the Virgo constellation, stands out as an "irregular galaxy" due to its lack of a structured spiral or elliptical shape. Instead, the stars within this celestial gathering appear more like a radiant entanglement of string lights rather than a typical galaxy.

 

The irregularity of some galaxies may be attributed to internal turbulence, while others may have formed through interactions with neighboring galaxies. As a result, a diverse range of sizes and shapes can be observed within this class of galaxies, including the scattered arrangement of stars seen in this particular galaxy.

 

To create this image, twelve camera filters were combined, capturing light across the mid-ultraviolet to the red end of the visible spectrum. The red patches visible in the image are likely interstellar hydrogen molecules that emit a glow when excited by the light emitted from hot, energetic stars. The other shimmering elements in the image consist of older stars. Additionally, Hubble's sharp view captures a multitude of distant and varied galaxies in the background.

 

The data used to construct this image were collected by Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 and the Advanced Camera for Surveys between 2006 and 2021.

 

Among its objectives, this image supports observational programs aimed at understanding the role that dwarf galaxies played billions of years ago in reheating the hydrogen that had cooled as the universe expanded following the big bang. Astronomers are also investigating the composition of dwarf galaxies and their stars to uncover the evolutionary connections between these ancient galaxies and more contemporary ones, such as our own.

 

The Hubble Space Telescope is a collaborative project between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA), with NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland overseeing its management.