Ministerstwo Nauki i Szkolnictwa Wyższego
Could stars ejected from galaxies be responsible for the
infrared glow in the sky background?
The results of studies carried out using the Spitzer Space Telescope gave hints on the source of
mysterious infrared glow in the sky background occurring in all directions in the sky.
It turns out that they can be caused by stars ejected from galaxies. The study involved the Polish astronomer at
the University of Warsaw, Dr. Szymon Kozlowski.
Recent research of the team led by Asanth Cooray of the University of California has been published in the
prestigious journal Nature. Researchers have found evidence that the infrared glow in the sky background
comes from the stars between galaxies, ejected during collisions between galaxies. Each star by itself is
invisible, but a large number of them can cause this effect.
The section of sky subject to observation was in the Boötes constellation, covering an arc equivalent to 50 full
Earth moons. 250 hours of the Spitzer Space Telescope observation time were spent on observations.
One of the members of the research group was Dr. Szymon Kozłowski from the University of Warsaw
Astronomical Observatory, who analysed the Spitzer data. In addition, in the same research team, he studied
the variability of 500,000 galaxies, and discovered one of the brightest supernovae.
The results of Cooray team, however, are inconsistent with another hypothesis explaining the mysterious
infrared glow in the sky, which was based on observations made with the same telescope by a group of
Alexander Kalinsky from the Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA). According to this research team, the source
of the studied phenomenon are the first stars and galaxies that formed after the Big Bang.
We will have to wait to see, which theory is correct. Further observations are needed. Future telescopes could
help, such as currently being built James Webb Space Telescope, which the scientists will use to try to observe
some of the first stars and galaxies. This should confirm or rule out one of the theories on the infrared glow in
the sky. PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland
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