16th April 2009
EMBARGOED UNTIL 0001 BST, 20th April 2009
Ref.: RAS PN 09/18 (NAM 5)
Issued by:
Dr. Robert Massey
Press and Policy Officer
Royal Astronomical Society
Burlington House
Piccadilly
London W1J 0BQ
Tel: +44 (0)20 7734 3307 / 4582
Mob: +44 (0)794 124 8035
E-mail: rm@ras.org.uk
RAS home page: http://www.ras.org.uk
Inge Heyer, Science Outreach Specialist
Joint Astronomy Centre
E-mail: outreach@jach.hawaii.edu
Tel: +1 808 969 6524
EWASS meeting press room (20th – 23rd April only)
Tel:
+44 (0)1707 285530
+44 (0)1707 285640
+44 (0)1707 285781
+44 (0)1707 285587
EWASS home page: http://www.jenam2009.eu (map of campus at http://www.star.herts.ac.uk/ewass)
EWASS press page: http://www.star.herts.ac.uk/ewass/press
RAS PN 09/18 (NAM 5, EMBARGOED): GLORIOUS ORION: UKIRT HELPS REVEAL CHAOTIC AND OVERCROWDED STELLAR NURSERY
Astronomers using the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) in Hawaii, the IRAM Millimetre-wave Telescope in Spain, and the Spitzer Space Telescope in orbit above the Earth, have completed the most wide-ranging census ever produced of dynamical star formation in and around the well-known Great Nebula of Orion. They have found this stellar nursery to be a lively and somewhat overcrowded place, with young stars emitting gas jets in all directions, creating quite a chaotic picture and demonstrating there is much more going on in Orion than previously thought. Researchers including UKIRT Director Professor Gary Davis will present this and other UKIRT science results on Monday 20th April at the European Week of Astronomy and Space Science at the University of Hertfordshire.
The research team comprises more than a dozen astronomers from the US, the UK and a number of other European countries. The project thus has a truly international flavour, representing a collaboration of minds from across the globe.Take a look at the constellation of Orion at night. With the naked eye you see only the brightest stars, like Betelgeuse and Rigel at the shoulder and knee of the constellation, or perhaps the Orion Nebula as a vaguely fuzzy patch around the sword. What your eye does not see is an enormous cloud of molecules and dust particles that hide a vast region where young stars are currently being born. On the sky, the region – known to astronomers as the Orion Molecular Cloud -- is more than 20 times the angular size of the full moon, spanning from far above the hunter’s head to far below his feet. It is one of the most intense regions of star formation in the local Milky Way and has been the subject of many small-scale studies over the years.
However, the current work is the first to present such a complete study of the young stars, the cloud of gas and dust from which they are being born, and the spectacular supersonic jets of hydrogen molecules being launched from the poles of each star.
Most of the "action" is hidden from view in visible light, because the molecular cloud is very thick and opaque. Only the Orion nebula, which is really just a blister on the surface of the cloud, gives an indication of what is really happening within. To see through the cloud, we need to observe at wavelengths beyond the reach of the human eye. The longer (or "redder") the wavelength, the better! Thus, the team have used UKIRT on Mauna Kea, the Spitzer Space Telescope, which works at even longer "mid-infrared" wavelengths, and the IRAM radio telescope, which operates beyond the infrared at short radio wavelengths.
The key to the success of this project was the combination of data from all three
facilities. Inspired by the richness of his images from UKIRT, scientist Chris Davis contacted
colleagues in Europe and on the U.S. Mainland. Tom Megeath, an astronomer from the University
of Toledo, provided a catalogue of the positions of the very youngest stars – sources
revealed only recently by the Spitzer Space Telescope. Thomas Stanke, a researcher based at the
European Southern Observatory in Garching, Germany, then provided extensive IRAM maps of the
molecular gas and dust across the Orion cloud. Dirk Froebrich, a lecturer at the University of
Kent, later used archival images from the Calar Alto Observatory in Spain (data acquired by
Stanke some 10 years ago) to measure the speeds and directions of a large number of jets by
comparing them with their positions in the new images.
Armed with these data, Davis was able to match the jets up to the young stars that drive them, as well as to density peaks within the cloud – the natal cores from which each star is being created.
Dr Davis says, "regions like this are usually referred to as stellar nurseries, but we have shown that this one is not being well run: it is chaotic and seriously overcrowded. Using UKIRT’s wide field camera (WFCAM), we now know of more than 110 individual jets from this one region of the Milky Way. Each jet is travelling at tens or even hundreds of miles per second; the jets extend across many trillions of miles of interstellar space. Even so, we have been able to pinpoint the young stars that drive most of them."
Dr Froebrich mentions that, "measuring the speeds and directions of the jets is essential to pinpoint the driving sources, especially in such crowded regions as M42 in Orion."
Dr Megeath adds, "With such a large number of young stars, we can study the "demographics" of star birth. This study will give us an idea of how long it takes baby stars to bulk up by pulling in gas from the surrounding cloud, what ultimately stops a star from growing bigger, and how a star's birth is influenced by other stars in the stellar nursery."
Dr Stanke notes, "Star formation research is fundamental to our understanding of how our own sun, and the planets that orbit it, were created. Many of the stars currently being born in Orion will evolve to be just like the sun. Some may even have earth-like planets associated with them."
Dr Andy Adamson, Associate Director at the UKIRT, says, "This spectacular dataset demonstrates the power of survey telescopes like UKIRT. With on-line access to data from other telescopes around the world, and the ease with which one can communicate with collaborators across the globe, massive projects like the Orion study are very much the future of astronomy."
CONTACTS
Inge Heyer, Science Outreach SpecialistJoint Astronomy Centre
E-mail: outreach@jach.hawaii.edu
Tel: +1 808 969 6524
Fax: +1 808 961 6516
Julia Maddock, Senior Press Officer
Science and Technology Facilities Council
Tel: +44 (0)1793 442094
Fax: +44 (0)1793 442002
E-mail: julia.maddock@stfc.ac.uk
Anita Heward, Press Officer
Royal Astronomical Society
Mob: +44 (0)7756 034 243
E-mail: anitaheward@btopenworld.com
Whitney Clavin, Press Officer
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Tel: +1 818 354 4673
Fax: +44 (0)1793 442002
E-mail: whitney.clavin@jpl.nasa.gov
Karin Zacher, Public Relations Officer
IRAM
E-mail: zacher@iram.fr
Helene Murphy
Media & PR Officer
University of Hertfordshire
Tel: +44 (0)1707 28 4095
E-mail: h.1.murphy@herts.ac.uk
Science Contacts
Please note that it is best to contact these individuals by e-mail.Dr Chris Davis
Joint Astronomy Centre
Tel: +1 808 969 6520
E-mail: c.davis@jach.hawaii.edu
Dr Andy Adamson
Joint Astronomy Centre
Tel: +1 808 969 6511
E-mail: a.adamson@jach.hawaii.edu
Dr Dirk Froebrich
Centre for Astrophysics & Planetary Science, University of Kent
Tel: +44 (0)1227 827346
E-mail: df@star.kent.ac.uk
Dr Tom Megeath
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Toledo
Tel: +1 419 530 7812
E-mail: megeath@physics.utoledo.edu
Dr Thomas Stanke
European Southern Observatory
Tel: +49 (0)89 32006116
E-mail: tstanke@eso.org
Prof. Gary Davis
Joint Astronomy Centre
Tel: +1 808 969 6504
E-mail: g.davis@jach.hawaii.edu
IMAGES
All images can be found athttp://outreach.jach.hawaii.edu/pressroom/2009_orion/
Captions
1. This spectacular image combines observations from the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope and the Spitzer Space Telescope. It shows just a small portion of the region surveyed. In this figure, parts of the Orion Molecular cloud are illuminated by nearby stars and therefore glow an eerie green colour. The jets punch through the cloud and can be seen as a multitude of tiny pink-purple arcs, knots and filaments. The young stars that drive the jets are usually found along each jet and are coloured golden orange.2. A close-up view of a spectacular jet (seen in red) popping out of a busy region of star formation in Orion. All of the red wisps, knots and filaments are in fact associated with jets from young stars, which in this figure are coloured orange. These data were acquired with the Wide Field Camera (WFCAM) at the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope.
3. The Wide Field Camera (long black tube) on the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii.
4. The United Kingdom Infrared Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii.
5. The IRAM 30-metre Telescope on Pico Veleta near Granada, Spain.
NOTES FOR EDITORS
Light Year
One light year is about 10 million million kilometres or 6million million miles.
Infrared Light
Infrared wavelengths are longer wavelengths than light waves. They are typically measured in microns, also called micrometres. One micron is one millionth of a metre, one 10000th of a centimetre, or one 25000th of an inch.The Orion Nebula (M42)
The great nebula in the constellation of Orion is probably one of the most frequently imaged objects in astronomy. This nebula is about 1300 light years away from Earth, and is the site of ongoing star formation. We see glorious colours in most wavelengths because the gas and dust is being illuminated and heated by the hot young stars in this cloud. M42 refers to the 42nd object in the Messier Catalogue of nebulous objects.UKIRT
The world's largest telescope dedicated solely to infrared astronomy, the
3.8-metre (12.5-foot) UK Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) is sited near the summit of Mauna Kea,
Hawaii, at an altitude of 4194 metres (13760 feet) above sea level. It is operated by the Joint
Astronomy Centre in Hilo, Hawaii, on behalf of the UK Science and Technology Facilities
Council. UKIRT's technical innovation and privileged position on the high, dry Mauna Kea site
have placed it at the forefront of infrared astronomy since its opening in 1979. UKIRT is
currently engaged in a world-leading infrared sky survey as well as the type of innovative
individual programmes described in this press release. More about the UK Infrared
Telescope:http://outreach.jach.hawaii.edu/articles/aboutukirt/
Spitzer Space Telescope
The Spitzer Space Telescope (formerly SIRTF, the Space Infrared Telescope Facility) was launched into space by a Delta rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida on 25 August 2003. During its mission, Spitzer will obtain images and spectra by detecting the infrared energy, or heat, radiated by objects in space between wavelengths of 3 and 180 microns (1 micron is one-millionth of a metre). Most of this infrared radiation is blocked by the Earth's atmosphere and cannot be observed from the ground. Consisting of a 0.85-meter telescope and three cryogenically-cooled science instruments, Spitzer is the largest infrared telescope ever launched into space.IRAM Millimetre-wave Telescope
IRAM is an international research institute for radio astronomy. Its overall objective is to explore the universe and to study its origins and evolution. IRAM was founded in 1979 by the French CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), the German MPG (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft) and the Spanish IGN (Instituto Geográfico Nacional) - initially an associate member, becoming a full member in 1990. Today, the institute is considered a model of scientific multinational cooperation. IRAM’s headquarters are located in Grenoble. With a staff of more than 120 scientists, engineers, technicians and administrative personnel, IRAM maintains and develops two observatories: the 30-metre telescope located on Pico Veleta near Granada in Spain, and the Plateau de Bure interferometer (an array of six 15-metre antennas) in the French Alps. Both instruments are prime facilities for radio astronomy and the most powerful observatories today operating at millimetre wavelengths.THE EUROPEAN WEEK OF ASTRONOMY AND SPACE SCIENCE
More than 1000 astronomers and space scientists will gather at the University of Hertfordshire for the European Week of Astronomy and Space Science (EWASS), incorporating the 2009 Royal Astronomical Society National Astronomy Meeting (RAS NAM 2009) and the European Astronomical Society Joint Meeting (JENAM 2009). The meeting runs from 20th to 23rd April 2009.EWASS is held in conjunction with the UK Solar Physics (UKSP) and Magnetosphere Ionosphere and Solar-Terrestrial Physics (MIST) meetings. The conference includes scientific sessions organised by the European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO) and the European Space Agency (ESA).
EWASS is principally sponsored by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS), the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) and the University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield.
THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY
The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS), founded in 1820, encourages and promotes the study of astronomy, solar-system science, geophysics and closely related branches of science. The RAS organizes scientific meetings, publishes international research and review journals, recognizes outstanding achievements by the award of medals and prizes, maintains an extensive library, supports education through grants and outreach activities and represents UK astronomy nationally and internationally. Its more than 3000 members (Fellows), a third based overseas, include scientific researchers in universities, observatories and laboratories as well as historians of astronomy and others.THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACILITIES COUNCIL
The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) ensures the UK retains its leading place on the world stage by delivering world-class science; accessing and hosting international facilities; developing innovative technologies; and increasing the socio-economic impact of its research through effective knowledge exchange partnerships. The Council has a programme of public engagement to inspire students, teachers and the public with UK science.STFC has a broad science portfolio including Astronomy, Astrophysics and Space Science, It gives researchers access to world-class facilities and funds the UK membership of international bodies such as the European organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO) and the European Space Agency (ESA). It also contributes money for the UK telescopes overseas on La Palma, Hawaii, Australia and in Chile, and the MERLIN/VLBI National Facility, which includes the Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank Observatory.
STFC is a partner in the UK space programme, coordinated by the British National Space Centre.
STFC home page
http://www.stfc.ac.uk
Reference
This press release refers to a paper published inAstronomy & Astrophysics:
"A census of molecular hydrogen outflows and their sources along the
Orion A molecular ridge: Characteristics and overall distribution"
C. J. Davis, D. Froebrich, T. Stanke, S. T. Megeath, M. S. N. Kumar,
A. Adamson, J. Eisloeffel, R. Gredel, T. Khanzadyan, P. Lucas,
M. D. Smith, and W. P. Varricatt
(2009, Volume 496, pp 153-176, Online Paper PDF Link)
Web links
Joint Astronomy Centre - UKIRThttp://www.jach.hawaii.edu/UKIRT/
Joint Astronomy Centre - UKIRT - WFCAM
http://www.jach.hawaii.edu/UKIRT/instruments/wfcam/
Joint Astronomy Centre Press Room
http://outreach.jach.hawaii.edu/pressroom/
Spitzer Space Telescope
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/
IRAM Millimetre-wave Telescope
http://www.iram.fr/
NAM 2009
http://jenam2009.eu/
Royal Astronomical Society
http://www.ras.org.uk/
Science and Technology Facilities Council
http://www.stfc.ac.uk/
This press release
http://outreach.jach.hawaii.edu/pressroom/2009_orion/