JWST spies concentric rings around a binary star

[Stu]

Amazing image here, looks fake but the rings are genuine, not an artefact.

https://www.sciencealert.com/extraordinary-phenomenon-in-space-captured-by-spellbinding-new-image?fbclid=IwAR0JcUr9H6LUCc9hRiyL1CMk7lrRzsubAODmy8X1hHmnWxI7cKt_YWqj_zs

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

Great article, thanks. 👍

[Knighty2112]

Nah, JWST needs a good collimation performing only!  

[Ratlet]

1 minute ago, Knighty2112 said:

Nah, JWST needs a good collimation performing only!  

I bet @FLO would get a Cheshire eyepiece out there in 2 days.

[Pixies]

Oh - if it's a new ring every 7-or-so years, it sounds like a good target for an animation.

 

[billhinge]

In case you are interested the JWST FITS archive is here. https://mast.stsci.edu/portal/Mashup/Clients/Mast/Portal.html. I downloaded some raw FITS files but nothing interesting, looks like you need to stitch and calibrate yourself and they are big. The documentation is megabytes and I don't have the patience to read it to find out which are the internet show stoppers that haven't yet been processed 

You can download as anonymous

Funny enough Nasa didn't get the email from the Pixinsight team ...

** Warning: Deprecated format: FITS

*** Error: PCL Legacy FITS Format Support: Invalid read operation in FITS

[niallk]

Wonder if the JWST designers ever considered curved spider vanes? 😂

 

Thanks for posting- amazing what's out there!!

[ONIKKINEN]

8 minutes ago, niallk said:

Wonder if the JWST designers ever considered curved spider vanes? 😂

 

Thanks for posting- amazing what's out there!!

The diffraction pattern is primarily due to the edges of the individual hexagonal mirror segments. Visualization below:

 

[Sunshine]

This is one phenomenon I had never heard of much less think I would ever see if I did know of it considering how difficult it is to resolve anything about individual stars themselves. 

JWST's resolving power is astounding, I cant wait for the next discovery, these rings remind me of tree rings!

Edited August 30, 2022 by Sunshine

[niallk]

9 hours ago, ONIKKINEN said:

The diffraction pattern is primarily due to the edges of the individual hexagonal mirror segments. Visualization below:

 

Yeah, I know 😉 - just messing, as it's one of those perennial topics that pops up on SGL!  Nice graphic 👍

[CraigT82]

8 minutes ago, niallk said:

Yeah, I know 😉 - just messing, as it's one of those perennial topics that pops up on SGL!  Nice graphic 👍

Maybe they ought to consider curved supports… I have heard professional astronomers complain that Sod’s law dictates the object they’re intending to study will lie under a big fat diff spike! 

[markse68]

7 hours ago, CraigT82 said:

Sod’s law dictates the object they’re intending to study will lie under a big fat diff spike! 

it’s ALWAYS the case for Sirius b (the pup)! 🤣

[Stu]

7 minutes ago, markse68 said:

it’s ALWAYS the case for Sirius b (the pup)! 🤣

That’s my excuse for never having seen it anyway!! 😂😂

[michael8554]

"JWST spies concentric rings around a binary star"

I knew it !

It's really a CIA funded dark mission to spy on aliens !

Michael

[Macavity]

I casually wonder what the latest image of a Planet HIP 65426 shows...
Are we looking a "Mint Humbug" Planet or a "diffraction pattern"? 🥳
(I imagine that the planet is the central *BLOB*... but we can dream!)


 

Edited September 2, 2022 by Macavity