|
Explanation: The center of our Galaxy is a busy place. In visible light, much of the Galactic Center is obscured by opaque dust. In infrared light, however, dust glows more and obscures less, allowing nearly one million stars to be recorded in the featured photograph. The Galactic Center itself appears on the left and is located about 30,000 light years away towards the constellation of the Archer (Sagittarius). The Galactic Plane of our Milky Way Galaxy, the plane in which the Sun orbits, is identifiable by the dark diagonal dust lane. The absorbing dust grains are created in the atmospheres of cool red-giant stars and grow in molecular clouds. The region directly surrounding the Galactic Center glows brightly in radio and high-energy radiation, and is thought to house a large black hole.
Follow APOD on:
Facebook,
Google Plus,
or
Twitter
|
January February March April May June July August September October November December |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Galactic Center - infrared
Publications with words: Galactic Center - infrared
See also:
- APOD: 2025 April 14 Á The Galactic Center in Radio from MeerKAT
- APOD: 2025 February 23 Á Saturn in Infrared from Cassini
- APOD: 2024 April 1 Á Swirling Magnetic Field around Our Galaxys Central Black Hole
- Milky Way Rising
- APOD: 2023 April 3 Á The Galactic Center Radio Arc
- SOFIA s Southern Lights
- Saturn in Infrared from Cassini