The "Tarantula Nebula" (officially known as 30 Doradus) is a region of active star formation located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a neighbor galaxy of the Milky Way. X-ray: NASA/CXC/Penn State Univ./L. Townsley et al.; IR: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI/JWST ERO Production Team.
The Smithsonian is partnering with the Art in Transit program of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority to feature celestial imagery from the Chandra X-ray Observatory at six Metro stations in Washington and Northern Virginia from today, July 18, through October 16.
Operated by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Mass., Chandra is the world’s most powerful X-ray telescope, observing the lifecycles of stars and galaxies and producing data used by astronomers across the globe to help understand our universe. As riders take a journey through the Metro system, so too will they embark on a cosmic journey through the deepest regions of outer space, viewing exploding stars, nebulae, black holes and other celestial objects. Chandra images will appear in six stations:
The Smithsonian believes these images will inspire curiosity among commuters, tourists and all other visitors to the Metro system and encourage them to reconsider the uniqueness and fragility of the planet we call home.
Since its launch on July 23, 1999, the Chandra X-ray Observatory has been NASA's flagship mission for X-ray astronomy. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center manages the Chandra program. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory's Chandra X-ray Center controls science from Cambridge and flight operations from Burlington, Mass. To learn more about Chandra, visit https://chandra.si.edu/.
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SI-247-2024
