Explanation:
The Spitzer Space Telescope's
encompasing infrared view of
the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy is hard to
appreciate in just
one picture.
In fact, more than 800,000 frames of data from Spitzer's
cameras have now been pieced together in an
enormous mosaic
of the galactic plane - the
most detailed infrared picture
of our galaxy ever made.
The small portion seen here spans nearly 8 degrees, roughly the
apparent
width of your fist held at arms length, across
the galaxy's center.
The full mosaic is 120 degrees wide.
Highlighted
in the false-color presentation are curving green
filaments of light from complex molecules - polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons
(PAHs) - that on Earth are the common, sooty
products of incomplete combustion.
The PAHs are found in
star
forming regions, along with reddish emission
from graphite
dust
particles.
Blue specks throughout the picture are individual Milky Way stars.
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