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Collection:
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NASA Spitzer Space Telescope Collection
Collection
NASA Spitzer Space Telescope Collection
Collection
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Title:
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Splendid Splinter
Title
Splendid Splinter
Title
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Description:
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The spiral galaxy NGC 5907, sometimes known as the "Splinter Galaxy" because of its unusual appearance, is located in the constellation Draco. It is fairly bright, and appears elongated because it has an edge-on alignment when viewed from Earth. It also has a strong set of dust lanes, visible in this image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope as red features. The central lane is so pronounced at visible light wavelengths, where it blocks our view of the starlight, that the galaxy was once mistaken for two objects and given two entries in the original New General Catalogue. The catalogue, published by J.L.E. Dreyer in 1888, was an attempt to collect a complete list of all nebulae and star clusters known at the time.
NGC 5907's special orientation and close proximity to Earth have made it a popular target for observation by both professional and amateur astronomers. Over the last decade, ever-improving infrared instrumentation have allowed scientists to detect light from the galaxy that was until now hidden by dust. Recent observations using Spitzer's InfraRed Array Camera at infrared wavelengths from 3-10 microns resulted in the discovery of a significant and potentially massive thick stellar disk. This is the first time that a thick disk has been detected and characterized in the infrared.
This image is composed of images obtained at four wavelengths: 3.6 microns (blue), 4.5 microns (green), 5.8 microns (orange) and 8 microns (red). The contribution from starlight has been subtracted from the 5.8 and 8 micron images to enhance the visibility of the dust features.
Description
The spiral galaxy NGC 5907, sometimes known as the "Splinter Galaxy" because of its unusual appearance, is located in the constellation Draco. It is fairly bright, and appears elongated because it has an edge-on alignment when viewed from Earth. It also has a strong set of dust lanes, visible in this image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope as red features. The central lane is so pronounced at visible light wavelengths, where it blocks our view of the starlight, that the galaxy was once mistaken for two objects and given two entries in the original New General Catalogue. The catalogue, published by J.L.E. Dreyer in 1888, was an attempt to collect a complete list of all nebulae and star clusters known at the time.
NGC 5907's special orientation and close proximity to Earth have made it a popular target for observation by both professional and amateur astronomers. Over the last decade, ever-improving infrared instrumentation have allowed scientists to detect light from the galaxy that was until now hidden by dust. Recent observations using Spitzer's InfraRed Array Camera at infrared wavelengths from 3-10 microns resulted in the discovery of a significant and potentially massive thick stellar disk. This is the first time that a thick disk has been detected and characterized in the infrared.
This image is composed of images obtained at four wavelengths: 3.6 microns (blue), 4.5 microns (green), 5.8 microns (orange) and 8 microns (red). The contribution from starlight has been subtracted from the 5.8 and 8 micron images to enhance the visibility of the dust features.
Description
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Release Date:
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2005/04/13
Release_Date
2005/04/13
Release Date
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Release Credit:
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NASA/JPL-Caltech/M.L .N. Ashby (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
Release_Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech/M.L .N. Ashby (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
Release Credit
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Image Credit:
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NASA/JPL-Caltech/M.L .N. Ashby (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
Image_Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech/M.L .N. Ashby (Harvard-Smithsonian CfA)
Image Credit
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Object name:
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NGC 5907
Object_name
NGC 5907
Object name
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Object name:
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Splinter Galaxy
Object_name
Splinter Galaxy
Object name
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Object type:
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Edge-on galaxy
Object_type
Edge-on galaxy
Object type
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Position (J2000):
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*RA: *15h15m53.70s *Dec: *56d19m44.00s
Position_(J2000)
*RA: *15h15m53.70s *Dec: *56d19m44.00s
Position (J2000)
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Distance:
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14 million pc; 46 million light-years
Distance
14 million pc; 46 million light-years
Distance
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Constellation:
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Draco
Constellation
Draco
Constellation
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Wavelength:
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3.6 (blue), 4.5 (green), 5.8 (orange), and 8.0 (red) microns
Wavelength
3.6 (blue), 4.5 (green), 5.8 (orange), and 8.0 (red) microns
Wavelength
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Image scale:
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13.1x9.4 arcmin
Image_scale
13.1x9.4 arcmin
Image scale
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Observers:
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M.L.N. Ashby (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
J.L. Pipher (University of Rochester)
W.J. Forrest (University of Rochester)
R.G. Arendt (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center)
S.P. Willner (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
P. Barmby (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
J.R. Stauffer (Spitzer Science Center)
H.A. Smith (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
J.J. Bock (California Institure of Technology)
M. Marengo (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
D. Rigopoulou (Oxford University)
G.G.Fazio (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
Observers
M.L.N. Ashby (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
J.L. Pipher (University of Rochester)
W.J. Forrest (University of Rochester)
R.G. Arendt (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center)
S.P. Willner (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
P. Barmby (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
J.R. Stauffer (Spitzer Science Center)
H.A. Smith (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
J.J. Bock (California Institure of Technology)
M. Marengo (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
D. Rigopoulou (Oxford University)
G.G.Fazio (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)
Observers
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Instrument:
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IRAC
Instrument
IRAC
Instrument
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Exposure Date:
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19 December 2003
Exposure_Date
19 December 2003
Exposure Date
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Exposure Time:
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1000 sec per sky position
Exposure_Time
1000 sec per sky position
Exposure Time
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Orientation:
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North is 60 deg CW from up
Orientation
North is 60 deg CW from up
Orientation
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facet_what:
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Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Earth
facet_what
Earth
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Visible Light
facet_what
Visible Light
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Draco
facet_what
Draco
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Infrared Array Camera (IRAC)
facet_what
Infrared Array Camera (IRAC)
facet_what
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facet_where:
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California
facet_where
California
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Washington, D.C.
facet_where
Washington, D.C.
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
facet_where
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
facet_where
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facet_when:
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1888
facet_when
1888
facet_when
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facet_when:
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19 December 2003
facet_when
19 December 2003
facet_when
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facet_when_year:
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2003
facet_when_year
2003
facet_when_year
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facet_when_year:
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1888
facet_when_year
1888
facet_when_year
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Image #:
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sig05-002
Image_#
sig05-002
Image #
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original url:
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original_url
original url
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UID:
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SPD-SPITZ-sig05-002
UID
SPD-SPITZ-sig05-002
UID
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