Webb reveals a fiery starburst in the Cigar Galaxy — Space photo of the week

If you own a small backyard telescope, there's a good chance you've seen the Cigar Galaxy (M82) with your own eyes. Not only is it relatively close to the Milky Way and one of the brightest galaxies in the night sky, but it's visible beside Bode's Galaxy (M81). A spiral galaxy about four times smaller than the Milky Way, M82 shines five times more brightly and forms stars at 10 times the rate, earning it the title of a starburst galaxy.

This image from the James Web Space Telescope (JWST) reveals a glowing core teeming with billions of stars. The shot is a follow-up to a close-up image published in 2024. Despite being a side-on view of M82, the photo shows its brilliant core exuding a blue-white glare, with red and orange dust clouds being pushed out above and below. The gas clouds contain cavities and ridges — details that are only possible to spot because of JWST's Near-InfraRed Camera (NIRCam), which can see straight through them.

M82's core is a busy place, containing more than 100 super star clusters, some still being born within dense gas clouds. Each super star cluster hosts hundreds of thousands of stars. The reason for M82's burst of star formation is probably its neighbor, M81, whose gravity it has likely interacted with. As a result, gas from M81 has found its way into M82's center, spurring an uptick in star formation despite the galaxy's small size.

Scientists can also see the glow from plumes of organic molecules in this image. The broad plumes, which are 160 light-years across, are called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and are being pushed away from the galactic disk by powerful outflowing winds produced by M82's super star clusters.

For stargazers in the Northern Hemisphere, M81 and M82 are a spectacular sight in the northern sky during fall and winter. Both galaxies can be spotted as small, diffuse patches of light northwest of Dubhe — the bright star marking the lip of the Big Dipper's bowl. Through a small backyard telescope, these two galaxies next door appear together in the same field of view.

For more sublime space images, check out our Space Photo of the Week archives.