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Mostly Mute Monday: The Galaxy's Fireworks (Synopsis)

By esiegel on August 3, 2015.

“That, then, is loveliness, we said,
Children in wonder watching the stars,
Is the aim and the end.

Being but men, we walked into the trees.” -Dylan Thomas

Yet when you look at the night sky, it isn't watching the stars that reveals all of the Universe's secrets, nor by looking with what you can see with your eyes. Looking beyond what visible light can teach us often reveals a whole Universe of wonder that we'd never see otherwise.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/WISE Team. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/WISE Team.

Looking in infrared light, NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) reveals the intricate structure behind many objects that are entirely invisible to even the world's most powerful visible light telescopes, showcasing the dynamics of the neutral, warm gas that's invisible to optical instruments. WISE surveyed the entire sky, lasting a mere 13 months before running out of coolant, with the information showcased in this colossal mosaic covering less than 3% of what's available.

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/WISE Team. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/WISE Team.

Go view and learn about the entire thing, in (spectacular) pictures and words, on Mostly Mute Monday!

Tags
Astronomy
Stars

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