Space

Largest astronomical image yet compiled shows Milky Way in 46 billion pixels

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Section of the image showing Eta Carinae
Lehrstuhl für Astrophysik, RUB
Section of the mosaic displaying the M8 nebula
Lehrstuhl für Astrophysik, RUB
Section of the image showing Eta Carinae
Lehrstuhl für Astrophysik, RUB

A team of scientistsfrom the Ruhr-Universität Bochum have compiled the largestastronomical image of all time. The stunning vista is comprised of animpressive 46 billion pixels, and is so large that the researchershave provided a special online tool in order to allow viewers to takein the cosmic scene.

The online tool allowsviewers to observe and zoom in on stunning aspects of the Milky Wayin incredible detail. Users can also search for objects such as starsand nebulae via the input box on the lower left of the screen, whilebeing provided with a coordinates and mini map to keep them aware ofexactly where they are in the huge image.

Section of the mosaic displaying the M8 nebula
Lehrstuhl für Astrophysik, RUB

The constituent piecesof the image were captured over the course of a five-year imagingcampaign carried out by the Ruhr-Universität Bochum researchers as they attempted tocreate a catalogue of celestial objects with variable brightness,such as a star when an exoplanets crosses its stellar disk.

By using telescopesbased in Chile's Atacama desert to shoot the same patches of thesouthern sky repeatedly over several days, the team was able tocapture and document 50,000 new variable objects. The astronomerstook several weeks to calculate and combine 268 of the images inorder to create the vast 194-gigabyte galactic mosaic.

You can take a look atthe huge composite image via the online tool, courtesyof Ruhr-Universität Bochum

Source:Ruhr-Universität Bochum

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2 comments
Bob Flint
Yes it seems there are dark areas in this universe but you have to zoom all the way in & it gets fuzzy. But amazing none the less to see so many stars at that distance as the most distant ones faded glimmer is all but lost in the sea of light, in the vastness of cosmos.
MichiganDave
It would be nice if there were a large poster of this image available, but not life sized, please!