「幻の銀河」の最新詳細画像　ウェッブ宇宙望遠鏡が撮影

【ワシントンＡＦＰ＝時事】米航空宇宙局（ＮＡＳＡ）と欧州宇宙機関（ＥＳＡ）は３０日、ジェームズ・ウェッブ宇宙望遠鏡が捉えた、渦巻銀河「Ｍ７４」の最新詳細画像を公開した。「幻の銀河」とも呼ばれるＭ７４は、うお座の方向に地球から約３２００万光年の距離にある。（写真はジェームズ・ウェッブ宇宙望遠鏡が捉えた、渦巻銀河「Ｍ７４」の中心部の赤外線画像。「幻の銀河」としても知られるＭ７４は、約３２００万光年の距離にあり、約１０００億個の星で構成される）
　ＮＡＳＡとＥＳＡは２９日の発表で、「画像の中心から外側へ向かって巻いている壮大な渦状腕の中にあるガスと塵（ちり、固体微粒子）の繊細なフィラメント構造が、ウェッブの鮮明な画像によって明らかになった」と述べた。
　また「中心領域にガスがないため、視界を遮られずに銀河中心核星団（ＮＳＣ）を観測することができる」と説明した。
　ウェッブ望遠鏡の赤外線技術で捉えたこの画像には、漆黒の深宇宙を背景に、Ｍ７４銀河の明るい青色の中心部と、その周りに渦巻いている塵と星からなる鮮やかな白、赤、ピンク、ライトブルーの腕が写っている。
　「局所宇宙における星形成の最初期段階について、より多くを知る」ヒントになる画像だと、ＮＡＳＡとＥＳＡは述べている。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2022/09/01-22:16）

The James Webb space telescope has revealed dazzling new detail of a previously known slice of the cosmos 32 million light-years away, in a new picture released by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA).
The infrared technology of the telescope, launched in December 2021, has allowed for an even clearer view of the so-called Phantom Galaxy than astronomers had ever seen before.
Webb's sharp vision has revealed delicate filaments of gas and dust in the grandiose spiral arms which wind outwards from the center of this image, NASA and the ESA said Monday.
A lack of gas in the nuclear region also provides an unobscured view of the nuclear star cluster at the galaxy's center, the agencies said in a statement.
The whirling celestial form, officially called M74, is located in the Pisces constellation 32 million light-years away from Earth.
The Webb image shows the galaxy's brilliant white, red, pink and light blue appendages of dust and stars swirling around a bright blue center, all set against the dark backdrop of deep space.
M74 was previously photographed by the Hubble telescope, which captured the galaxy's spiraling blue and pink arms, but instead showed its glowing center as a soft yellow.
The Phantom Galaxy is a favorite target for astronomers studying the origin and structure of galactic spirals, NASA and the ESA said. The picture taken by Webb will help them learn more about the earliest phases of star formation in the local Universe, and record more information about 19 star-forming galaxies close to our own Milky Way.
Astronomers will also use the picture to pinpoint star-forming regions in the galaxies, accurately measure the masses and ages of star clusters, and gain insights into the nature of the small grains of dust drifting in interstellar space, the statement said.
Webb's new pictures have thrilled the space community as the telescope orbits the Sun at a distance of a million miles (1.6 million kilometers) from Earth, in a region of space called the second Lagrange point.
The telescope, which has a primary mirror more than 21 feet (6.5 meters) wide, is an international collaboration between NASA, the ESA and the Canadian Space Agency. It is expected to operate for approximately 20 years.