Using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, researchers have made significant progress in confirming the source of dust in early galaxies. Observations of two Type II supernovae, Supernova 2004et (SN 2004et) and Supernova 2017eaw (SN 2017eaw), revealed large amounts of dust in the eruptions of each of these objects. The mass found by the researchers supports the theory that supernovae played a key role in supplying dust to the early universe.

Dust is the building material for many things in the universe, including planets. As the dust of dying stars spreads out into space, it carries the necessary elements to assist in the birth of a new generation of stars and their planets. Where this dust came from has puzzled astronomers for decades. A major source of cosmic dust can be a supernova – after a dying star explodes, its remaining gas expands and cools to form dust.

“Until now, there has been little direct evidence of this phenomenon because our capabilities have allowed us to study only the dust population in Supernova 1987A, a relatively close supernova 170,000 light-years away to date,” said lead author Melissa. shahband Johns Hopkins University and the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland. “When the gas cools down enough to form dust, that dust can only be detected with sufficient sensitivity in the mid-infrared range.”

For supernovae more distant than SN 1987A, such as SN 2004et and SN 2017eaw, both located in NGC 6946 about 22 million light-years away, this combination of wavelength coverage and extreme sensitivity can only be achieved with Webb’s MIRI (Infrared Instrument). Webb’s observation is the first in the study of dust formation from supernovae since the discovery of newly formed dust on SN 1987A by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) telescope nearly a decade ago.

Another particularly interesting result of their work is not only the detection of dust, but also the amount of dust. dust A supernova was discovered at this early stage of its life. At SN 2004et, researchers found more than 5,000 Earth masses of dust.

“If you look specifically at how much dust we see on SN 2004et, it rivals the measurements at SN 1987A and is only a fraction of its age,” added Ori Fox, program manager at the Space Telescope Science Institute. “This is the largest mass of dust found in supernovas since SN 1987A.”

Observations have shown astronomers that young, distant galaxies are full of dust, but these galaxies are not old enough for medium-mass stars like the Sun to provide dust as they age. More massive, short-lived stars may have died in a very short time and in enough numbers to produce a lot of dust.

While astronomers confirm that supernovae produce dust, the question of how much of that dust can withstand the internal shocks after the explosion remains unanswered. Seeing a lot of dust at this stage in the lives of SN 2004et and SN 2017eaw indicates that the dust can withstand a shock wave – proof that supernovas are indeed important dust factories.

The researchers also note that current mass estimates may be the tip of the iceberg. While Webb has allowed researchers to measure colder dust than ever before, there may be colder, undetectable dust that continues to be covered by outer layers of dust, radiating further beyond the electromagnetic spectrum. The researchers stressed that the new findings with Webb only hint at new possibilities for studying supernovas and dust formations, and what this might tell us about the stars from which the stars originated.

“Excitement is mounting to understand what this dust in the core of a exploded star means,” Fox said. “Given these specific findings, I think our fellow researchers will be thinking about innovative ways to work with these dusty supernovae in the future.”

SN 2004et and SN2017eaw are the first of five targets included in this program. The observations, made as part of the Webb General Observer 2666 program, were published July 5 in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Source