Leo P (NIRCam Image)
About This Image
Caption
This image from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope shows a portion of the Leo P dwarf galaxy (stars at lower right represented in blue). Leo P is a star-forming galaxy located about 5 million light-years away in the constellation Leo. A team of scientists collected data from about 15,000 stars in Leo P to deduce its star formation history. They determined that it went through three phases: an initial burst of star formation, a “pause” that lasted several billion years, and then a new round of star formation that is still continuing.
The image from Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) combines infrared light at wavelengths of 0.9 microns (represented in blue), 1.5 microns (green), and 2.77 microns (red). The stars in Leo P appear blue in comparison to the background galaxies for several reasons. Young, massive stars that are common in star-forming galaxies are predominantly blue. Leo P also is extremely lacking in elements heavier than hydrogen and helium, and the resulting “metal-poor” stars tend to be bluer than Sun-like stars. A bubble-like structure at bottom center is a region of ionized hydrogen surrounding a hot, massive O-type star.
About The Object
- Object Name
- Leo P
- Object Description
- Dwarf, low-mass galaxy
- R.A. Position
- 10:21:45.123
- Dec. Position
- +18:05:16.89
- Constellation
- Leo
- Distance
- About 5.3 million light-years
- Dimensions
- Image is about 1 arcmin across (about 1575 light-years)
About The Data
- Data Description
- This image was created with Webb data from proposal: 1617 (K. McQuinn). Image processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI).
- Instrument
- NIRCam
- Exposure Dates
- April 8-12, 2023
- Filters
- F090W, F150W, F277W
About The Image
- Color Info
- These images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by the James Webb Space Telescope using the NIRCam instrument. Several filters were used to sample wide 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: F090W, Green: F150W, Red: F277W
- Compass and Scale Image
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About The Object
- Object Name
- A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
- Object Description
- The type of astronomical object.
- R.A. Position
- Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
- Dec. Position
- Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
- Constellation
- One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
- Distance
- The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.
- Dimensions
- The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky.
About The Data
- Data Description
- Proposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
- Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.
- Instrument
- The science instrument used to produce the data.
- Exposure Dates
- The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
- Filters
- The camera filters that were used in the science observations.
About The Image
- Color Info
- A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.
- Compass and Scale Image
- An astronomical image with a scale that shows how large an object is on the sky, a compass that shows how the object is oriented on the sky, and the filters with which the image was made.
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