Mapping the Milky Way's hidden nurseries of starlight
In short: This visual tour reveals the Galactic Plane as it truly appears in the infrared. By stitching together hundreds of hours of data, it captures the dense regions where our galaxy creates new stars.
The video showcases a vast portion of the Milky Way, covering nearly 40% of the Galactic Plane. Because our Solar System is positioned roughly halfway between the center and the edge of the galaxy's 100,000 light-year diameter, we see the galaxy as a circular strip of gas, dust, and stars.
The imagery highlights the specific locations of stellar birth, featuring bubbling nebulas and wispy filaments. Three separate infrared bands—350 microns (red), 160 microns (green), and 70 microns (blue)—are combined to create the full image.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Herschel's view of the Galactic Plane
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