Webb images inspire awe in Salem star enthusiasts
A young, star-forming region called NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by NASA’s new James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals for the first time previously invisible areas of star birth. (NASA photo)
Chris Claysmith was sitting with his partner and nephew on Monday when he first saw the images beamed in from the James Webb Space Telescope.
“My first reaction was ‘Oh, wow,’” said the Chemeketa Community College astronomy instructor.
NASA released one image on Monday and additional images on Tuesday from the telescope–the largest and most powerful ever launched–and within minutes the science community began weighing in. Comparisons to Hubble Space Telescope images emerged as well as theories on what data was to come in the next few months.
“I think there was a lot being said,” Claysmith said, “but we always start with, ‘Wow, that’s pretty,’ and we go from there.”
The images show galaxies far beyond our own and include the first detailed glimpses of Carina Nebula–a star forming region in the Milky Way galaxy–and Stephan’s Quintet, a set of five galaxies.
That’s the photo that caught Mike Conley’s attention. The current president of Salem’s astronomy club, Night Sky 45, Conley was eagerly awaiting NASA’s photo drop.
“I look at them in amazement and disappointment,” he said, focusing on the image of Stephan’s Quintet–the only image that could be seen from Salem. The remaining four images fall in the skies of the southern hemisphere.
“I look at my image of Stephan’s Quintet versus their image and it kind of makes me sad,” said Conley, who is also an astrophotographer. “I’m looking at a galaxy with so much detail and looking at my image, it’s just five smudges.”
Stephan’s Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies, as captured by the James Webb Space Telescope (NASA photo)
Salem astrophotographer Mike Conley’s photo of Stephen’s Quintet from May 2022 (Courtesy/Mike Conley)
And for some, even the James Webb photos were unimpressive.
“There was reaction (to the photos) like that,” Claysmith said of what he saw online. “But I always start my astronomy classes by saying astronomy is pretty pictures. For me though, what makes this incredible is that, number one, this exists. It’s real and it exists in the universe. It’s not just some cool picture an artist made. It tells us what our universe looks like.”
The photos, Claysmith said, will have more to tell us in the coming months and have already shaped his classes this fall.
“I can now replace slides that say, ‘This is what we think it is maybe,’ to ‘Here’s the picture,’” Claysmith said. “I am so excited to see where this goes.”
For example, in the spring, Claysmith hopes the telescope will have additional photos from star-forming regions that show newly born stars – something that has eluded astronomers in the past.
Conley is also excited about the future of the Webb images.
“The pictures represent the notion that science keeps advancing towards the question of: who are we? It’s the ultimate question,” he said.
Night Sky 45, he said, is working with the Marion County Parks Department to have access to local parks to host “star parties,” something the group hasn’t been able to do since the beginning of the pandemic. Members typically gather and view stars together.
Until an agreement is worked out with the county, the group is hosting meetings on Zoom.
“Just looking at the pictures, (the image is) a mess,” Claysmith said. “But when you look at all the individual pieces and add up that those are billions of stars and we’re seeing galaxies as they were 10 billion years ago, it tells the history of the universe and that’s a lot more than a pretty picture.”
NASA released this image of deep space and thousands of galaxies on Monday, July 11 – the first from the James Webb Space Telescope. More images were released on Tuesday, July 12. (NASA)
Contact reporter Caitlyn May at [email protected].
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