Henize 206, Star Formation
The primary Spitzer image, showing the wispy filamentary structure of Henize 206, is a four-color composite mosaic created by combining data from an IRAC at near-infrared wavelengths and the mid-infrared data from a MIPS. Blue represents invisible infrared light at wavelengths of and microns. Note that most of the stars in the field of view radiate primarily at these short infrared wavelengths. Cyan denotes emission at microns, green depicts the micron light, and red is used to trace the thermal emission from dust at 24 microns. The separate instrument images are included as insets to the main composite. An inclined ring of emission dominates the central and upper regions of the image. This delineates a bubble of hot, x-ray emitting gas that was blown into space when a massive star died in a supernova explosion millions of years ago. The shock waves from that explosion impacted a cloud of nearby hydrogen gas, compressed it, and started a new generation of star formation. The death of one star led to the birth of many new stars.
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Photo credit: © Photo Researchers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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