The new map, produced using the AKARI surveyor, is far sharper than its most recent predecessor, completed by the IRAS satellite back in 1984.
The AKARI satellite uses a telescope with a 68.5cm diameter mirror to detect radiation at near-, mid- and far-infrared wavelengths. Many of the cooler objects in the Universe emit infrared radiation that penetrates dust and gas much more readily than visible light, so telescopes like AKARI are able to image objects like forming stars and the centres of galaxies.
AKARI was launched on 21 February 2006 from the Uchinoura Space Center in southern Japan. On current projections, the liquid helium it uses to keep the detectors cold will last until at least 9 September 2007, giving the primary mission a lifetime of about 550 days. Scientists may then extend its life using mechanical coolers to allow observation of sources emitting near-infrared radiation to continue.
The new high-resolution map is assembled from thousands of different images made as the AKARI satellite orbited the Earth gradually scanning the entire sky.
AKARI will continue to scan the sky at six independent wavelengths until the expiration of the on-board 170 litres of liquid helium, all the while gradually building up a multi-colour map of the entire sky. From these observations, detailed catalogues will be created with the aim of providing a complete census of the local infrared Universe. These catalogues will eventually be released to the global astronomical community. After the helium has expired AKARI will still have the use of its near-infrared cameras in the final phase of the mission that will last for a further year.
This image is created from the data taken by one of the onboard instruments, the Near- and Mid-Infrared Camera (IRC). The centre of our Milky Way Galaxy is located at the centre of the image. The bright region extending from left to right is the Milky Way.
