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Construction of the Individual Great Observatories M101 Images
About the Object
- R.A. PositionR.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.14h 3m 13.0s
- Dec. PositionDec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.54° 20' 52.99"
- ConstellationConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.Ursa Major
- DistanceDistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.21.8 million light-years (6.7 megaparsecs)
- DimensionsDimensionsThe physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky.This image is 18 arcminutes (114,000 light-years or 35,000 parsecs) wide.
About the Data
- Data DescriptionData DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.Spitzer data: The science team for the Spitzer data include K. Gordon (STScI), C. Engelbracht, G. Rieke, K. Misselt, and J.-D. Smith (University of Arizona), and R. Kennicutt (University of Cambridge). Hubble data: This image was created from HST data from the following proposals: 9490: K. Kuntz (Johns Hopkins University) 9492: F. Bresolin (University of Hawaii) 5210: J. Trauger (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) 5397: J. Mould (NOAO) 6829: Y.-C. Chu (University of Illinois, Urbana) The Hubble exposures have been superimposed onto ground-based images, visible at the edge of the image, taken at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope in Hawaii, and at the 0.9-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory, part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory in Arizona. Chandra data: The science team was led by K. Kuntz (Johns Hopkins University). - InstrumentInstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.Spitzer>IRAC, Spitzer>MIPS, HST>ACS/WFC, HST>WFPC2, and CXO>ACIS
- Exposure DatesExposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.Mar 8, 2004 and May 10/11, 2004 (Spitzer), March 1994, September 1994, June 1999, November 2002, and January 2003 (HST), and March 2000 - January 2005 (CXO)
- FiltersFiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.Spitzer: 85 sec/pixel (IRAC and 200 sec/pixel (MIPS 24 micron) HST: F435W (B), F555W (V)), and F814W (I) CXO Energies: 0.45 - 1.00 keV and 1.00 - 2.00 keV
- Object NameObject NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.M101, NGC 5457, The Pinwheel Galaxy
- Object DescriptionObject DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.Face-on Spiral Galaxy
- Release DateFebruary 10, 2009
- Science ReleaseNASA’s Great Observatories Celebrate the International Year of Astronomy with a National Unveiling of Spectacular Images
- Credits
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Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov
