Astronomers have released the largest and most detailed low-frequency radio image of the Milky Way to date, revealing the Southern Hemisphere view of the galaxy in unprecedented color and clarity, the Daily Mail reported.
The image, built over 18 months using more than 40,000 hours of observation, offers scientists a new window into how stars are born, evolve, and die. It was created by researchers at the International Center for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) in Perth, Western Australia, using data from the Murchison Widefield Array telescope, located about 800 km north of Perth.
“This vibrant image delivers an unparalleled perspective of our galaxy at low radio frequencies,” said Silvia Mantovanini, a PhD student at Curtin University, the co-owner of ICRAR. “It provides valuable insights into the evolution of stars, including their formation in various regions of the galaxy, how they interact with other celestial objects, and ultimately their demise.”
Supercomputers processed massive amounts of data from two extensive sky surveys to build the image. Radio waves, unlike visible light, can penetrate dense clouds of gas and dust, allowing astronomers to see parts of the universe that optical telescopes cannot.
When compared to visible-light images, the radio-frequency view reveals the Milky Way in much sharper and more colorful detail. The new image has twice the resolution, 10 times the sensitivity, and twice the coverage of the 2019 version, allowing for a more comprehensive study of the galaxy’s structure.
Mantovanini’s research focuses on supernova remnants—the expanding clouds of gas and energy left behind when massive stars explode. She said the image helps astronomers distinguish between gas from newborn stars and remnants of dead ones. “You can clearly identify remnants of exploded stars, represented by large red circles,” she said. “The smaller blue regions indicate stellar nurseries where new stars are actively forming.”
The data could also deepen scientists’ understanding of pulsars, dense, fast-spinning remnants of collapsed stars. By studying their brightness at different frequencies, astronomers hope to learn more about how these mysterious objects emit radio waves and where they are located in the Milky Way.
Associate Professor Natasha Hurley-Walker, the principal investigator of the GLEAM–X survey at ICRAR, said this milestone is a leap forward in galactic research. “This low-frequency image allows us to unveil large astrophysical structures in our Galaxy that are difficult to image at higher frequencies,” she said. “No low-frequency radio image of the entire Southern Galactic Plane has been published before, making this an exciting milestone in astronomy.”
The new image gives scientists an unmatched view of the Milky Way’s hidden structures and could transform how they study the life cycle of stars and the evolution of our galaxy.
