Simple facts
What it is: 9 archive images from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Telescope
Where is it: a distant galaxy with pockets near star formation and giant black holes
When shared: July 23, 2025
This new image collection from NASA’s Chandra Space Telescope, released in 1999, shows how different objects in a space look with an added layer of x-ray vision.
The Hubble Space Telescope image the cosmos of almost visible light, while the James Webbspace Telescope (JWST) relies on infrared rays beyond human vision, while Chandra focuses solely on high-energy X-ray light.
Therefore, each of these spatial telescopes see the universe through different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum, and by combining them, researchers can study the universe in more detail.
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Chandra’s ability to see in X-ray light means that it can detect high-temperature energy regions such as black holes, supernova remnants, and pockets of superheat gases. In the newly released images, these energy x-rays are displayed in pink and purple shades.
Related: James Webb and the Hubble Telescope Jointly Exploring Space Nursery: Space Photos of the Week
In the top row is N79 (left), the region of star formation in the large Magellan cloud. This is a small satellite adjacent galaxy in the Milky Way. In Chandra’s image, the N79 is burning with hot gas shaped by an energetic star. NGC 2146 (center) is a spiral galaxy that bursts through supernova remnants and wind-like X-ray ejection from giant stars. IC 348 (right) is another glowing star-forming region with reflective interstellar wisps and scattered young stars.
The middle column shows two spiral galaxies: Milky Way-like M83 (left) and NGC 1068 (right). The core of the latter galaxy is illuminated by high-energy X-rays produced by wind from black holes and blows at 1 million miles (1.6 million km/h). Meanwhile, M82 (center) is a starburst galaxy, with the plume of superheated gases formed as stars formed at an extraordinary velocity.
In the bottom row is NGC 346 (left). This is the home of young clusters of thousands of newborns scattered among the glowing remains of the explosion of stars. IC 1623 (center) shows the merger of two galaxies. This triggers the formation of new stars that glow with X-ray light. The largest and closest superstar cluster to Earth, Westerlund 1 (right), contains thousands of stars showering in the cluster with powerful X-rays.
NASA has also released a video that explores images in greater detail, creating a page showing individual images of Chandra, Hubble, and JWST objects.
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