James Webb Reveals Sagittarius B2 Star Formation
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope released new mid‑ and near‑infrared images of Sagittarius B2 — the Milky Way’s most active star‑forming region near the galactic center — showing warm dust, dense opaque clouds and colorful young stars in unprecedented detail. The images, taken with Webb’s Mid‑Infrared Instrument (MIRI) and Near‑Infrared Camera (NIRCam), were highlighted in a NASA news release and involve U.S. and international partners and University of Florida co‑investigators.
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Galaxy's largest star formation captured in never-before-seen detail
New information:
- Images captured by JWST’s MIRI and NIRCam show warm dust and gas glowing in Sagittarius B2 with stars visible as blue pinpoints and a red central region marking intense activity.
- Researchers note Sagittarius B2 holds roughly 10% of the galactic center’s gas but produces about 50% of its stars, making it uniquely prolific for study.
- Named scientists and institutions: Adam Ginsburg, Nazar Budaiev, Taehwa Yoo (University of Florida); image processing credited to Alyssa Pagan (STScI); NASA cited as releasing the images.