Providing a stunning infrared view of the Milky Way core
In 2020, scientists used SOFIA data to create a vivid infrared image of the Milky Way’s center. The image encompasses more than 600 light-years of galactic real estate, showing dense swaths of gas and dust. A notable feature is the Arches Cluster, a region with the densest collection of stars in the galaxy.
“It’s incredible to see our galactic center in detail we’ve never seen before,” James Radomski, a Universities Space Research Association scientist at the SOFIA Science Center at NASA, said in a 2020 agency statement. “Studying this area has been like trying to assemble a puzzle with missing pieces. The SOFIA data fills in some of the holes, putting us significantly closer to having a complete picture.”
