NASA released new images capturing Neptune and its rings, taken by the James Webb Space Telescope in July.
Neptune is of the solar system outermost planet which has thin rings with faint dust bands around.
These were first observed in infrared, allowing the capture of seven of Neptune’s 14 moons.
The seven that can be seen from the newly released shots include Galatea, Naiad, Thalassa, Despina, Proteus, Larissa, and Triton.
Triton is Neptune’s largest and most unusual moon, dominating James Webb’s portrait of Neptune as a bright spot of light, creating characteristic diffraction peaks seen in many of Webb’s images.
Webb recently showed Jupiter in its sharpest form in new photos released last month.
The newest telescope technology was launched less than a year ago in December 2021 and exists for the purpose of peering into the universe.
Experts hope they can see the beginning of times when stars and first the galaxies were formed.
Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI
NASA’s Voyager 2 was the first spacecraft to see Neptune’s frozen blue planet in a 1989 flyby, with no other spacecraft having successfully visited the planet.
It’s been three decades since astronomers last saw Neptune’s rings in detail, said Heidi Hammel of the Space Science Institute.
Ms. Hammel, a planetary astronomer and Neptune system expert who works with Webb, said in a Twitter thread: “More than 20 years of work and JWST delivered.
“… And that bright blue” star “? That’s not a star! That’s Neptune’s fantastic moon, Triton! It looks brighter than Neptune because at these near-infrared wavelengths, Neptune’s atmospheric methane absorbs sunlight, making the planet darker – this is also why the rings pop out. “
James Webb is now the largest and most powerful telescope in the world, capable of capturing up to one million miles from Earth.
