An international team, including a researcher from the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), has obtained an incredible image of the planetary nebula NGC 1514 using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), revealing the nebula's spectacular dusty rings in unprecedented detail. NGC 1514 was one of the first nebulae to be studied by astronomer William Herschel, who noted that when viewed through his telescope (the biggest in the World at the time) the nebula looked like a fuzzy cloud somewhat similar in appearance to one of his other discoveries: the planet Neptune. The new images acquired
The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) has initiated a project of science outreach in the Tenerife-II prison in El Rosario, with the aim of bringing knowledge about the Universe to the prisoners, as well as to the educational and other working personnel at that centre. This initiative is taken in the framework of the commitment of the IAC to the popularization of science as a tool for inclusión and social transformation. The project is led by the astrophysicist, and IAC researcher David Aguado and is a continuation of a first experiment in 2024 in the Madrid V prison at Soto del Real
The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) is actively participating in the observation of object 3I/ATLAS (C/2025 N1 ATLAS), initially included as A11pl3Z in the confirmed list of Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) of the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Centre (IAU/MPC). The object, which has been shown to be the third interstellar object detected in our solar system, was discovered by one of the telescopes in the ATLAS network for the detection and early warning of asteroids on an Earth-impact trajectory. The IAC is part of this network with its new telescope structure, ATLAS