巨蛇星云的原恒星喷流

2024年6月27日

Protostellar Outflows in Serpens
Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Klaus Pontoppidan (NASA-JPL), Joel Green (STScI)

Explanation: Jets of material blasting from newborn stars, are captured in this James Webb Space Telescope close-up of the Serpens Nebula. The powerful protostellar outflows are bipolar, twin jets spewing in opposite directions. Their directions are perpendicular to accretion disks formed around the spinning, collapsing stellar infants. In the NIRcam image, the reddish color represents emission from molecular hydrogen and carbon monoxide produced as the jets collide with the surrounding gas and dust. The sharp image shows for the first time that individual outflows detected in the Serpens Nebula are generally aligned along the same direction. That result was expected, but has only now come into clear view with Webb’s detailed exploration of the active young star-forming region. Brighter foreground stars exhibit Webb’s characteristic diffraction spikes. At the Serpens Nebula’s estimated distance of 1,300 light-years, this cosmic close-up frame is about 1 light-year across.

Tomorrow’s picture: Olber’s comet

巨蛇星云的原恒星喷流
影像提供: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Klaus Pontoppidan (NASA-JPL), Joel Green (STScI)

说明: 这幅来自韦伯太空望远镜的特写影像，呈现了巨蛇星云里的新诞生恒星所发出的物质喷流。这些原恒星的外泛流，为指向相反的成对双极喷流。它们喷射的方向，则垂直于环拱旋转塌缩的婴儿期恒星之吸积盘。在韦伯的这张近红外相机影像里，泛红的色泽来自喷流冲撞周围的气体和尘埃时，所产生的分子氢及一氧化碳辐射。这张清晰的影像，首次证实在巨蛇星云里所侦测到的个别喷流，大致沿着相同的方向排列。此结果虽然与预期相符，但是直到韦伯为这个活跃的年轻恒星形成区拍下了细致的探索影像，才得以清楚目睹。影像里，带着韦伯望远镜特有衍射芒的天体，是位于前景的较明亮恒星。以巨蛇星云1,300光年的估计距离来换算，这片宇宙特写视野的宽度约为1光年。 （Serpens Nebula 巨蛇星云）

明日的图片: Olber’s comet