The sparkling galaxy NGC 1546 appears in the first new images captured by the Hubble Space Telescope since it switched to a new “single gyroscope mode”, marking the end of nearly a month-long hiatus for the iconic observatory.
NGC 1546, the first new image from the Hubble Space Telescope since switching to the new “single gyroscope mode.” (Image: NASA, ESA, STScI, David Thilker (JHU); Image processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI)).
NGC 1546 is a spiral galaxy. This is the first image from the Hubble Telescope in the new pointing mode. The scientific operations of this iconic observatory had paused at the end of May due to a technical issue with one of its gyroscopes—a device that contains rotating wheels to help the telescope manage its movement.
According to Hubble’s official website, this component accurately points the telescope and measures the rotation speed of an object. By June 14, engineers decided to allow the venerable telescope to operate again using just one gyroscope.
Now, this image of the NGC 1546 galaxy is the first result of the new operational mode of Hubble, although it utilized some data from the James Webb Space Telescope and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array in Chile to fill in certain details.
The multi-wavelength image of NGC 1546 reveals a bright core, lanes of dust, and areas where stars are being born.
From what was captured by the Hubble Telescope, the illuminated dust lanes are backlit by the bright core of the galaxy, giving them a rusty brown appearance. The core itself has a slightly yellow hue, indicating an abundance of older stars. The visible blue light in the dust represents regions where young stars are currently forming.
