Stunning Sombrero Galaxy View Captured By James Webb

The latest capture from the James Webb Space Telescope reveals a breathtaking view of the Sombrero Galaxy, which gets its name due to its resemblance to the iconic Mexican hat. This galaxy, officially known as Messier 104, features a broad, flat structure akin to the wide brim of a sombrero, and for the first time, its outer rings have come into clear focus.

Situated approximately 30 million light-years away in the Virgo constellation, the Sombrero Galaxy has been photographed before by the Hubble Space Telescope. However, in Hubble’s images, it appears as a pale, opaque disk, while Webb’s latest image uncovers an outer blue disk surrounding a small, luminous core at the center.

Comparison of the Sombrero Galaxy in mid-infrared light (top) and visible light (bottom). Webb's MIRI showcases the smooth inner disk, whereas Hubble captures the vast glow of the stellar bulge. — This image compares the view of the famous Sombrero Galaxy in mid-infrared light (top) and visible light (bottom). The James Webb Space Telescope’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument) reveals the smooth inner disk of the galaxy, while the Hubble Space Telescope’s visible light image shows the large and extended glow of the central bulge of stars. Both the Webb and Hubble images resolve the clumpy nature of the dust that makes up the Sombrero galaxy’s outer ring.
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)

The contrasting visuals stem from the different wavelengths utilized by the telescopes. Hubble primarily captures images in the visible light spectrum—similar to how our eyes perceive it—rendering dusty galaxies like the Sombrero Galaxy somewhat opaque. In contrast, Webb operates in the infrared spectrum, allowing it to see through the dust and reveal hidden structures.

Webb’s imagery also provides a detailed look at the dust in the galaxy’s outer ring. A closer examination reveals that this blue-white area has a clumpy texture, with dust unevenly distributed in various pockets. This feature is particularly interesting to scientists as it contains molecules known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, typically found in regions where new stars are forming. However, the rate of star formation in the Sombrero Galaxy is quite low, producing only half the number of stars annually compared to our Milky Way.

Additionally, the image highlights a bright region at the galaxy’s core, which is associated with an active galactic nucleus (AGN) around its supermassive black hole. Unlike some more active AGNs, this particular black hole is relatively quiescent, consuming material at a more subdued rate.