An international team of more than 100 astronomers is preparing to study the core of our Milky Way galaxy using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. In this way, scientists hope to learn more about galactic evolution and star formation processes. The study was published in the scientific journal magazine Astrophysics.
Experts hope to find out, among other things, what role Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at its center, plays in the Milky Way and why stars in the Milky Way are forming slower than they should.
According to astronomers, the center of the galaxy is a very difficult object to observe for two reasons. Firstly, it contains a large number of stars that are difficult to distinguish from each other at a distance of 25.8 thousand light years, separating our planet from the “heart” of the Milky Way. Second, the galactic core is hidden from earthly observers by dense clouds of cosmic dust.
The James Webb Telescope will be able to solve both problems, thanks to its tremendous resolution and infrared sensors that “see” through dust barriers, making it easier to identify individual stars.
The study also plans to include the currently operating Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) and the Hubble Space Telescope, as well as future orbiting observatories such as the Rome Space Telescope. The proposed survey will collect data about the galactic center at one-, five- and 10-year intervals.
Formerly the James Webb Telescope caught The center of the galaxy cluster furthest from Earth.