There is far too much dust in the universe compared to what our calculations predict.
This fundamental problem for astronomy, called the “dust budget crisis,” must be resolved to better predict the crucial role of dust in star shelters, the birth of planets, and the host of molecules key to life as it is. we know.
Researchers hope to finally solve the dust problem with the help of the James Webb Space Telescope, which is coming out of months of operation on July 12 with the release of its first operational images. Once Webb is ready, among the set of early-stage observations will be dust-producing Wolf-Rayet binaries to better see the origin history of the dust.
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Webb will be in a better position than many other observatories to catch this elusive compound. With infrared light, it can peer through clouds of dust, and because of its orbit in deep space, it is far from disturbing light sources that could confound any calculations about dust abundance.
Webb’s target selection is also key to navigating the dusty mystery. Wolf-Rayet stars, which are unusually hot and bright, may be massive producers of dust after interacting with companion stars in binary systems.
Astronomers usually spot these stellar interactions through spinning wheel patterns generated when the two stars orbit each other and the winds blowing from the surfaces of those stars collide in space. However, because Wolf-Rayet stars are so bright, their brightness overwhelms the fainter emission of nearby dust.
However, Webb’s specialized optics will provide unprecedented views in the infrared spectrum. Webb also has a higher resolution than NASA’s now-retired Spitzer Space Telescope, which also observes from space in infrared light.
Long infrared wavelengths of light are not only valued for their ability to peer through dust, but can also provide the spectrum of elements in dust clouds. Some of these chemicals may be crucial to the building blocks of life, allowing us to understand how dust distributes organic molecules in the universe.
“The mid-infrared light that Webb can detect is exactly the wavelength of light we want to look at to study the dust and its chemical composition,” said study leader Ryan Lau, a fellow at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA ), in a 2020 statement (opens in new tab) by the Webb Consortium.
Lau’s team will study two Wolf-Rayet binary systems using two Webb instruments: the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) and the Near-Infrared Imager and Slit-Free Spectrograph (NIRISS).
Under scrutiny will be WR 140, a well-studied star system that will serve as a baseline to make sure Webb’s observations work as expected. Also on the list is WR 137, whose two stars will approach each other early in Webb’s mission in a potential dust-generating event.
Lau’s investigation will be one of a series of early release science observations performed by Webb during the telescope’s first five months of normal operation. In addition to serving as a probe into our dusty origin story, the Wolf-Rayet observations will also help Webb astronomers test Webb’s dynamic range, or the difference between the brightest and faintest objects it can observe.
Studying the range “will be useful to the astronomical community in many ways in the future, such as studying the dusty disk around the bright center of an active galaxy or finding a planet orbiting a bright star,” Mansi Castlewal, a Caltech astronomer on the science team for early release, the same statement said.
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