ALMA – Page 17 – National Radio Astronomy Observatory

ALMA Sees Einstein Ring

ALMA image of the gravitationally lensed galaxy SDP.81. The bright orange central region of the ring (ALMA’s highest resolution observation ever) reveals the glowing dust in this distant galaxy. The surrounding lower-resolution portions of the ring trace the millimeter wavelength light emitted by carbon monoxide.

Protostar Growth Spurts

Astronomers using ALMA have imaged the episodic outflow of a young protostar known as CARMA-7. The twin jets — each nearly 2.46 trillion kilometers long — have distinct gaps, revealing that the star is growing by fits-and-starts.

ALMA Sees Einstein Ring in Stunning Image of Lensed Galaxy

ALMA/Hubble composite image of the gravitationally lensed galaxy SDP.81. The bright orange central region of the ring (ALMA’s highest resolution observation ever) reveals the glowing dust in this distant galaxy. The surrounding lower-resolution portions of the ring trace the millimeter wavelength light emitted by carbon monoxide. The diffuse blue element at the center of the ring is from the intervening lensing galaxy, as seen with the Hubble Space Telescope.

ALMA Observes Supernova 1987A

Composite image of supernova 1987A. ALMA data (red) shows newly formed dust in the center of the remnant. HST (green) and Chandra (blue) show the expanding shockwave.

Starless Cloud Cores

This image shows the ALMA data overlaid on an artist’s impression background. The ALMA data show two main cores as imaged by emission from the molecular ion N2D+ (two nitrogen and one deuterium atom). The core on the right is particularly bright and rounded, suggesting it is self-gravitating and poised to form a massive, single star – a very rare occurrence in star formation. The other core appears more distorted and fragmented, potentially leading to the formation of multiple lower-mass stars. This fragmentation is a normal process in star-forming clouds.

Powerful Jets of Young Stars

Inside a gigantic cloud of dark molecules and gas is a pair of young stars known as HH46/47. One of these stars is going through a normal but violent phase where its magnetic poles act like railways to channel charged particles away from the star. ALMA observed tons of molecules traveling out of this star along these jets at superfast speeds. These outflows eventually distort and help clear away the cloud from around the star. In this false-color image from ALMA, blue shows jet material heading toward us and red marks the jet particles speeding in the opposite direction.

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