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r_alex_hall t1_iu82s84 wrote

Reply to comment by ThePharmercy in Why does the angle of Spitzer's Pillars of Creation image look different? by MalcolmY

MIRI captures mid-infrared, NIRCAM captures near-infrared.

https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2022/07/Webb_s_first_deep_field_MIRI_and_NIRCam

What either is or means starts with looking up resources on those terms, I guess? I don’t know the implications.

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powerman228 t1_iu8m3wr wrote

Near infrared means it's closer to the visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum. I believe NIRCam can actually see red and orange visible light.

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the-dusty-universe t1_iu9dali wrote

Quick explanation: think of wavelengths in terms of energy. Short wavelength = high energy, long wavelength = low energy. So in this case in the UV/optical (HST), you mostly see the high energy photons from young, hot stars. In the near-infrared (NIRCam), you mostly see slightly lower energy photons from older, cooler stars. In the mid-infrared (MIRI), you see the even lower energy photons from dust that absorbed higher energy photons from stars (blocking us from seeing them) and then cooled and radiated that energy away.

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