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M82 (NIRCam Image)

A section of Messier 82 as imaged by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.

A team of astronomers used NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to survey the starburst galaxy Messier 82 (M82), which is located 12 million light-years away in the constellation Ursa Major. M82 hosts a frenzy of star formation, sprouting new stars 10 times faster than the Milky Way galaxy. Webb’s infrared capabilities enabled scientists to peer through curtains of dust and gas that have historically obscured the star formation process.

This image from Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) instrument shows M82’s center in an unprecedented level of detail. With Webb’s resolution, astronomers can distinguish small, bright compact sources that are either individual stars or star clusters. Obtaining an accurate count of the stars and clusters that compose M82’s center can help astronomers understand the different phases of star formation and the timelines for each stage.

In this image, light at 2.12 microns is colored red, 1.64 microns is green, and 1.40 microns is blue (filters F212N, 164N, and F140M, respectively).

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    09:55:52.0
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    69:40:48.99
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Ursa Major
  • 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.
    12 million light-years (3.7 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.

    This image was created with Webb data from proposal: 1701 (M. Marin). Image processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI).

  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    JWST>NIRCam
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    5 Janurary 2024
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    JWST> F140N, F164N, F212N
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    M82, NGC 3034
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Starburst Galaxy
  • Release Date
    April 3, 2024
  • Science Release
    NASA’s Webb Probes an Extreme Starburst Galaxy
    Read the release
  • Credit
    Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Alberto Bolatto (UMD)

Downloads

  • Full Res (For Print), 2160 × 2146
    tif (9.15 MB)
  • Full Res (For Display), 2160 × 2146
    png (6.74 MB)
A section of Messier 82 as imaged by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.
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 James Webb Space Telescope using the NIRCam instrument. Several filters were used to sample varying 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:  Blue: F140W, Green: F164N, Red: F212N

Related Images & Videos

Left: Messier 82 as imaged by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Right: A section of Messier 82 as imaged by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.

M82 (Hubble and Webb)

Starburst galaxy M82 was observed by the Hubble Space Telescope in 2006, which showed the galaxy’s edge-on spiral disk, shredded clouds, and hot hydrogen gas. The James Webb Space Telescope has observed M82’s core, capturing in unprecedented detail the structure of the galactic...

A section of Messier 82 as imaged by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.

M82 (NIRCam Image)

Astronomers used the James Webb Space Telescope to look toward M82’s center, where a galactic wind is being launched as a result of rapid star formation and subsequent supernovas. Studying the galactic wind can offer insight into how the loss of gas shapes the future growth of...

Annotated image of the starburst galaxy Messier 82 captured by Webb's NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) instrument, with compass arrows, a scale bar, and color key for reference. At left is Messier 82 as imaged by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. A small square highlights the section that the image on the right shows in greater detail. White text at bottom reads "Hubble." At right, a section of Messier 82 as imaged by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. An edge-on spiral starburst galaxy with a bright white, glowing core set against the black background of space. White text at bottom reads "Webb." In the upper left corner, a scale bar is labeled 7,500 light-years.

M82 (Hubble and Webb Compass Image)

Annotated image of the starburst galaxy Messier 82 captured by Webb's NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) instrument, with compass arrows, a scale bar, and color key for reference. The north and east compass arrows show the orientation of the image on the sky. Note that the...

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Details

Last Updated
Aug 28, 2025
Contact
Media

Laura Betz
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
laura.e.betz@nasa.gov

Image Credit

NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Alberto Bolatto (UMD)

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