Stolen 1.5 Terabytes of James Webb Space Telescope data publicly accessible via searchable database, enlarging our cosmic viewpoint to unprecedented dimensions.
Named: Staring Deep Into the Cosmos: COSMOS Reveals the Universe Like Never Before
Get ready to embark on a cosmic journey like no other! The "mind-blowing" Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) has just dumped the "massive 1.5TB of data from the James Webb Space Telescope" into the public domain, and it's not just size that matters here – this gigantic trove opens up an unprecedented "look into the deep, dark recesses of the universe" spanning nearly 800,000 galaxies.
Curious astronomers can easily feast their eyes on this interstellar smorgasbord with the included interactive viewer. But that's not all – the whole NIRCam and MIRI mosaics and tiles are right there, too, along with a full photometric catalog.
Backed by NASA and powerhouses like the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), and Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), this data release promises "the largest view deep into the universe [the public] will have ever seen."
According to the press release, the published survey maps 0.54 degrees of the sky, approximately the size of three full moons, with the near infrared imaging (NIRCam) and a smaller 0.2 square degree area with mid-infrared imaging (MIRI).
To help amateur stargazers digest this gargantuan data dump, COSMOS-Web kindly offers a full aperture and model-based photometric catalog. Using this treasure trove, interested parties can analyze "photometry, structural measurements, redshifts, and physical parameters for nearly 800,000 galaxies."
For those who want to dive deeper, the new JWST imaging combined with previous COSMOS data offers a wealth of opportunities for exploration. It's claimed that this combination opens up "many unexplored scientific avenues" for researchers and enthusiasts alike.
Before you leap into the data, it might be helpful to familiarize yourself with some key terms and units used by COSMOS-Web. For instance, if you want to examine the JWST NIRCam mosaics, you'll see that the newly surveyed area is divided into 20 zones with reference codes. Each mosaic comes in four NIRCam filters: F115W, F150W, F277W, and F444W. To get an idea of scale, mosaics are available in both 30mas and 60mas, with 'mas' being short for milliarcseconds, a unit commonly used in astronomy.
Mosaics (made by combining multiple tiles) and individual tiles (images captured by the telescope) are available for download, providing detailed observations of the cosmos. For example, a single 30mas pixel scale mosaic NIRCam mosaic might set you back 174GB, while individual tiles are somewhat smaller at 7-10GB (compressed). Keep in mind that you'll need specialized astronomical software to open and analyze these FITS data maps, but you're spoiled for choice with software options, some of which are free and open-source.
The COSMOS project has made use of many of the major telescopes on both Earth and in space. It started with the Hubble Space Telescope, covering what is now known as the COSMOS field – a 2-square-degree region containing around 2 million galaxies. The initial Hubble survey needed 640 orbits around the Earth. Ultimately, the researchers aim to study the development and evolution of galaxies across cosmic time.
Stay on the cutting edge of space exploration and keep your eyes peeled for groundbreaking discoveries to come!
[References][1] COSMOS-Web press release[2] COSMOS Data Release[3] RIT News: COSMOS-Web Project Receives NASA Funding[4] NASA's James Webb Space Telescope[5] Staying Grounded in Deep Space: COSMOS, JWST, and You
Enjoy the opportunity to delve into space-and-astronomy like never before, as the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) offers an vast data set from the James Webb Space Telescope, revealing science-filled discoveries spanning nearly 800,000 galaxies in deep space. Leverage technology by employing astronomy software to analyze this unique treasure trove, which includes photometry, structural measurements, redshifts, and physical parameters for these galaxies.
