Tomography of a cosmic bubble

20 September, 2017 / Read time: 1 minute

The data collected with ALMA are not just a single image, but a three-dimensional dataset (a data cube) with each slice being observed at a slightly different wavelength. Because of the Doppler effect, different slices of the data cube show images of gas moving at different speeds towards or away from the observer. By displaying different velocities we can cut this cosmic bubble into virtual slices just as we do in computer tomography of a human body.

Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/F. Kerschbaum