What’s Infrared and Why Do We Care?

The James Webb Space Telescope Will Tell Us

Infrared astronomy is not new — it’s been around for decades, but it continues to shake up our view of the cosmos. In particular, it lets us peek into warm places in the universe that we couldn’t see into with other types of telescopes and detectors tuned to visible light or other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Infrared radiation is given off by warm things. YOU glow in the infrared, although you probably never gave it much thought.

Out in the larger universe, infrared radiation from hot young stars, for example, can slip through the clouds of gas and dust that surround them. This makes these once-hidden objects detectable to us — “visible”, in a sense and in a way they weren’t when we looked at those same clouds of gas and dust with optical telescopes.

The best way to study the universe in infrared wavelengths is to send spacecraft out beyond our infrared-interfering atmosphere. So, in recent decades such telescopes as the Spitzer Space Telescope, the Herschel Observatory and new instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope have extended our view of the planets, stars and galaxies into new realms of discovery.

There’s a new kid on the infrared detection block called the James Webb Space Telescope that is being readied for launch in a few years. It will be a high-resolution eye on the infrared universe and answer a lot of questions about processes of star formation, the activities of hidden black holes at the hearts of galaxies, and the search for worlds around other stars.

Want to learn more about it?  NASA has a great little video out that answers a lot of questions about JWST and the infrared universe. You can see the video and read more about the project at the JWST web site.

CROWD-SOURCE SCIENCE FUNDING:  WE CAN DO IT!

Speaking of cutting-edge research, my friends over at the Uwingu project are nearing the end of their crowd-sourcing campaign. They have only a few hours left today (Friday, September 14th, 2012) before campaign ends.

These guys are absolutely serious about funding good science research that isn’t getting funded and should be. Here’s where you come in.  You can join the push for funding for as little as $10 (or even less) and you get some cool perks along with your contribution.

What’s not to like?

You part with the equivalent cost of a Venti latté and a brownie, or a personal pan pizza and a drink, or a beer and some wings, or maybe some music downloads, and in the not-too-distant future, a researcher gets a chance to answer a burning scientific question — with YOUR help. So, head on over to their Web site and make a difference.  I did!   And, after you join up, they’ll send you some perks and keep you posted on an exciting new product they’ll be selling to help fund science into the indefinite future. Check it out!