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Massive Star VY Canis Majoris – Polarized Light
About the Object
- R.A. PositionR.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.07h 22m 58.33s
- Dec. PositionDec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.-25° 46' 3.2"
- ConstellationConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.Canis 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.Approximately 5,000 light-years (1.5 kiloparsecs)
- DimensionsDimensionsThe physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky.Roughly 35 arcseconds (0.85 light-years or 0.25 parsecs) across
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.The Hubble image was created from HST data from proposals: 7304: R. Humphreys, K. Davidson, T. Jones, and R. Gehrz (University of Minnesota) and J. Krautter and T. Szeifert (Landessternwarte, Heidelberg) 10262: R. Humphreys and T. Jones (University of Minnesota), G. Herbig (University of Hawaii), and G. Wallerstein (University of Washington). - InstrumentInstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.HST>ACS/HRC
- Exposure DatesExposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.August 17, 2004
- FiltersFiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.F658N (H-alpha) (POL0V, POL60V, and POL120V) and F550M(V) (POL0V, POL60V, and POL120V)
- Object NameObject NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.VY Canis Majoris
- Object DescriptionObject DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.Variable Star with Circumstellar Nebula
- Release DateJanuary 8, 2007
- Science ReleaseAstronomers Map a Hypergiant Star’s Massive Outbursts
- Credit
This image is a composite of many separate exposures made by the ACS instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope using several different filters. Three filters were used to sample various wavelength ranges in each instrument. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic image. In this case, the assigned colors are: Cyan: F550M (V) + POL0V Yellow: F550M(V) + POL60V Red: F550M(V) + POL120V
Related Images & Videos
Hubble Images Outbursts from Massive Star
These NASA Hubble Space Telescope images show the outflow from one of the brightest hypergiant stars in the sky, VY Canis Majoris. The image on the left, taken with Hubble's Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2, reveal its complex circumstellar ejecta, with arcs, filaments, and...
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Details
Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov
