August 20, 2022

James Webb Telescope spent hours observing Andromeda Galaxy on August 19, 2022. NIRCam Imaging instrument was used to study and collect data on Andromeda Galaxy.  Andromeda Galaxy, cataloged as Messier 31 or M31 is located at a distance of approximated 2.48 million light years from earth and has a diameter of 152,000 light years. This galaxy is estimated to have over 1 trillion stars. It is the nearest large galaxy to our own Milky Way galaxy. This galaxy can be viewed with naked eyes and appear as a milky blur. M31 is located in the constellation Andromeda and is best observed in November. Its not exactly known when this galaxy was first discovered, however, Persian astronomer Abd al-rahman al-Sufi’s The Book of Fixed Stars from the year 964 contains the first known report of the object. Andromeda is one of the most fascinating objects for the astronomers and everyone is eagerly waiting for new images and data from James Webb Telescope from its observations of the Andromeda galaxy. 

Typically, data and images are released within few months of the observation once the peer review has been completed. In addition to Andromeda Galaxy, James Webb Telescope observed Pulsars, Comets, Protostars and other Galaxies this week. The entire schedule of weekly James Webb Telescope observations can be found here.