James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

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NASA Webb Finds Early-Universe Analog’s Unexpected Talent for Making Dust

NASA Webb Mission Team

Goddard Space Flight Center 06 Jan 2026

 

Using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have spotted two rare kinds of dust in the dwarf galaxy Sextans A, one of the most chemically primitive galaxies near the Milky Way. The finding of metallic iron dust and silicon carbide (SiC) produced by aging stars, along with tiny clumps of carbon-based molecules, shows that even when the universe had only a fraction of today’s heavy elements, stars and the interstellar medium could still forge solid dust grains. This research with Webb is reshaping ideas about how early galaxies evolved and developed the building blocks for planets, as NASA explores the secrets of the universe and our place in it.

 

Article link:

https://science.nasa.gov/missions/webb/nasa-webb-finds-early-universe-analogs-unexpected-talent-for-making-dust/

 

Pic Description: 

Images from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope of the dwarf galaxy Sextans A reveal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), large carbon-based molecules that can be a signifier of star formation. The inset at the top right zooms in on those PAHs, which are represented in green.

Credits: Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, Elizabeth Tarantino (STScI), Martha Boyer (STScI), Julia Roman-Duval (STScI); Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

 

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First Sky Map from NASA’s SPHEREx Observatory

By Monika Luabeya 06 Jan 2026

 

NASA’s SPHEREx Observatory has mapped the entire sky in 102 infrared colors, as seen here in this image released on Dec. 18, 2025. This image features a selection of colors emitted primarily by stars (blue, green, and white), hot hydrogen gas (blue), and cosmic dust (red).

 

While not visible to the human eye, these 102 infrared wavelengths of light are prevalent in the cosmos, and observing the entire sky this way enables scientists to answer big questions, including how a dramatic event that occurred in the first billionth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a second after the big bang influenced the 3D distribution of hundreds of millions of galaxies in our universe. In addition, scientists will use the data to study how galaxies have changed over the universe’s nearly 14-billion-year history and learn about the distribution of key ingredients for life in our own galaxy.

 

Article link: 

https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/first-sky-map-from-nasas-spherex-observatory/

 

Pic Description: 

NASA’s SPHEREx Observatory has mapped the entire sky in 102 infrared colors, as seen here in this image released on Dec. 18, 2025. This image features a selection of colors emitted primarily by stars (blue, green, and white), hot hydrogen gas (blue), and cosmic dust (red).

NASA/JPL-Caltech

 

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Watch a Supernova's Expansion Over 25 Years in Dramatic NASA Timelapse

09 January 2026 By Michelle Starr

 

A new video provides a front-row seat to a cosmic drama that has been playing out for centuries.

 

Kepler's supernova remnant is extremely exciting for astronomers – a rare example of a supernova for which we have a clear kick-off timeline, dating back more than 400 years. It's also just 20,000 light-years away; not super-close, but close enough that, with today's instruments, its changes can be tracked in exquisite detail.

 

Read more:

Watch a Supernova's Expansion Over 25 Years in Dramatic NASA Timelapse : ScienceAlert https://share.google/lQozKD6OeeOHmCekA

 

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Edited January 10 by ➕👇 ꓤꓱꓷꓠꓵ🎵Tone

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NASA’s Webb Delivers Unprecedented Look Into Heart of Circinus Galaxy

Tuesday, January 13, 2026 5am Release ID: 2026-105

 

Summary

A specialized technique may change what scientists thought about how much material black holes eject.

 

Supermassive black holes are known to both consume and eject matter during their most active periods. Based on previous observations, astronomers theorized that Circinus’ active black hole ejected a much larger amount of matter in the form of outflows than they took in. However, a highly specialized observation mode on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has begun to change what some astronomers think about the amount of matter lost to outflows from some black holes.

 

Article Link:

https://www.stsci.edu/contents/news-releases/2026/news-2026-105/

 

Pic Description: 

This image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope shows the Circinus galaxy. A close-up of its core from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope shows the inner face of the hole of the donut-shaped disk of gas disk glowing in infrared light. The outer ring appears as dark spots. 

Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, Enrique Lopez-Rodriguez (University of South Carolina), Deepashri Thatte (STScI); Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI); Acknowledgment: NSF's NOIRLab, CTIO

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Latest news https://www.space.com/astronomy/black-holes/james-webb-space-telescopes-mysterious-little-red-dots-may-be-black-holes-in-disguise

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How fast is the universe expanding?

 

A new JWST program hopes to provide fresh insight into the problem through a totally novel method: using multiply-lensed supernova observations. Despite how it may sound, it’s perhaps the most promising new method currently being explored.

 

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Telescope discovers 49 new galaxies in less than three hours
By Raquel Brandao

A brief look at a quiet stretch of sky by the MeerKAT radio telescope revealed dozens of unseen galaxies, each carrying the raw material needed to keep making stars.

The findings show how much of the nearby universe can still hide in plain sight, even in short observation windows.

The work was led by Dr. Marcin Glowacki at Curtin University in Western Australia. His research tracks how galaxies gain and lose gas over time, so unexpected signals became the focus.

Lessons from the MeerKAT 49ers galaxies
Methods tested on the 49ers can scale up for larger surveys that need consistent results from machine searching.

Square Kilometre Array (SKA), a planned radio observatory made from linked antennas, will integrate MeerKAT into its Phase 1 system.

SKA surveys will push deeper, so teams need reliable pipelines and clear quality checks to avoid missing real galaxies.

Together, the 49ers demonstrate how quickly MeerKAT and modern data pipelines can map hydrogen in preparation for future SKA surveys.

 

Read more:
https://www.earth.com/news/meerkat-radio-telescope-discovers-49-new-galaxies-in-less-than-three-hours/

 

Pic Description: 
Centaurus A is a famous example of a relatively nearby radio galaxy. Inside the galaxy is a supermassive black hole which is generating the large jets which can be seen emerging perpendicular to the disc of the galaxy. Credit: ESO/WFI (Optical); MPIfR/ESO/APEX/A.Weiss et al. (Submillimetre); NASA/CXC/CfA/R.Kraft et al. (X-ray). 

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Hubble Telescope watches star blast out jet of hot gas 32 light-years long

By Robert Lea published 6 hours ago

The protostar is launching the longest outburst ever seen at 32 light-years long.

 

Using the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have witnessed an infant star 20 times larger than the sun setting interstellar clouds ablaze.

The source of this cosmic conflagration is a stellar jet travelling at an incredible 2.2 million miles per hour (3.5 million kilometers per hour), the fastest outflow of this type ever seen.

This particular outflow is also the longest outflow from a forming star or protostar ever seen by astronomers, stretching out for a staggering 32 light-years. For context, that is around 8 to 10 times as wide as our entire solar system.

The stunning image of this cosmic eruption from Hubble shows two so-called Herbig-Haro (HH) objects designated HH 80 and HH 81, respectively, glowing in neon green and pink. HH 81 is to the upper left of the image, while HH 80 is to the bottom right.

 

Article link: 
https://www.space.com/astronomy/stars/hubble-telescope-watches-star-blast-out-jet-of-hot-gas-32-light-years-long

 

Pic Description: 
Outbursts from an infant star light up the interstellar clouds HH 80 and HH 81
Image credit: NASA, ESA, and B. Reipurth (Planetary Science Institute); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)

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Intricacies of Helix Nebula Revealed With NASA's Webb
20 Jan 2026 10:00am Release ID: 2026-103

Summary
New image offers most detailed infrared view of iconic nebula to date

First spotted in the early 1800s, the Helix Nebula has become one of the most iconic planetary nebulas in the sky, often referred to as the “Eye of God” or the “Eye of Sauron” for its striking, ring-like shape. One of the closest planetary nebulas to Earth, it has become a favorite among astronomers using ground- and space-based telescopes to study the final moments of a dying star in the greatest detail. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has now leveled those studies up, offering the clearest infrared look at this familiar object.

 

Article link:
https://science.nasa.gov/missions/webb/intricacies-of-helix-nebula-revealed-with-nasas-webb/

The 14 second video compares images of the Helix Nebula from three NASA observatories: Hubble’s image in visible light, Spitzer’s infrared view, and Webb’s high-resolution near-infrared look.

 

Pic Description[Top]: 
This new image of a portion of the Helix Nebula from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope highlights comet-like knots, fierce stellar winds, and layers of gas shed off by a dying star interacting with its surrounding environment.
Credits: Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

 

Pic Description [Dual]:
This image of the Helix Nebula from the ground-based Visible and Infrared Telescope for Astronomy (left) shows the full view of the planetary nebula, with a box highlighting Webb’s field of view (right).
Image: ESO, VISTA, NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, J. Emerson (ESO); Acknowledgment: CASU