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Star Field in M31 Imaged by Hubble WFC3

Star Field in M31 Imaged by Hubble WFC3
The Hubble Space Telescope has imaged the star field around the Cepheid variable V1 in M31. This two-color image shows individually resolved stars in the outer disk of the Andromeda Galaxy. The soft, brown swirls are dust lanes obscuring light from stars farther away from our line of sight. The blue cluster towards the upper right of the image contains massive young stars that are emanating intense ultraviolet light. The Cepheid variable, V1, the first Cepheid ever found outside of our own galaxy, is a moderate-looking star in the lower left of the image.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    00h 41m 26.99s
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    41° 10' 6.0"
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Andromeda
  • Distance
    DistanceThe 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.
    About 2.5 million light-years (0.8 megaparsecs)

About the Data

  • Data Description
    Data 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 image was created from Hubble data from proposal 12326: K. Noll (PI), Z. Levay, M. Mutchler, T. Borders, L. Frattare, M. Livio, C. Christian, D. Soderblom, and H. Bond (Hubble Heritage Team/STScI). Note:The Hubble Space Telescope observations of Hubble's Variable M31-V1 were made possible from ground-based data provided by the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO).
  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    HST>WFC3/UVIS
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    December 2010 - January 2011, Exposure Time: 1.7 hours
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    F475X (Wide Blue) and F600LP (Long Pass)
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    M31-V1
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Cepheid Variable Star V1 in M31
  • Release Date
    May 23, 2011
  • Science Release
    Hubble Views the Star that Changed the Universe
  • Credits
    NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)

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Star Field in M31 Imaged by Hubble WFC3
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

This image is a composite of separate exposures acquired by the WFC3 instrument on HST. Several filters were used to sample broad wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Cyan: F475X (Wide Blue) Orange: F600LP (Long Pass)

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Details

Last Updated
Feb 17, 2025
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov