With Spitzer, we can peer right into the heart of our own galaxy and see breathtaking detail. This picture is crammed with fascinating features that we have just begun to explore.

Our Spitzer data, combined with data obtained by other telescopes, will allow us to determine which of these objects are truly at the galactic center, and which are in spiral arms along the way. This survey will help us to better understand the mass distribution and structure of our own galaxy and how it compares to other galaxies.

One question we hope to address is how stars can form so efficiently in a place like the galactic center. Stars there are still able to form in an environment with unusually strong magnetic fields and tidal shear forces.

All right then. I guess it is.

I want to wait until I get the right heart.

A quiet benefactor. Her heart is in the right place.