Astronomy Picture of the Day |
APOD: 2022 August 12 - Portrait of the Eagle Nebula
Explanation:
A star cluster around 2 million years young surrounded by
natal clouds of dust and glowing gas,
Messier 16 (M16) is also
known as The Eagle Nebula.
This beautifully detailed image
of the region adopts the colorful Hubble palette and includes
cosmic sculptures
made famous in Hubble Space Telescope close-ups of the
starforming complex.
Described as elephant trunks or
Pillars of Creation,
dense, dusty columns rising near the center are light-years in length but
are gravitationally contracting to form stars.
Energetic radiation from the cluster stars erodes material near
the tips, eventually exposing the embedded new stars.
Extending from the ridge of bright emission left of center
is another dusty starforming column known as the
Fairy of Eagle Nebula.
M16 lies about 7,000 light-years away,
an easy target for binoculars or small telescopes in a
nebula rich part of the sky
toward the split constellation
Serpens Cauda
(the tail of the snake).
As framed, this telescopic portrait of the Eagle Nebula is about 70
light-years across.
APOD: 2022 January 20 - NGC 7822 in Cepheus
Explanation:
Hot, young stars and
cosmic pillars
of gas and dust seem to crowd into NGC 7822.
At the edge of a giant
molecular cloud toward the northern
constellation Cepheus, the glowing star forming region
lies about 3,000 light-years away.
Within the nebula, bright edges and dark shapes stand out in this
colorful
telescopic skyscape.
The image includes data from
narrowband filters,
mapping emission from atomic oxygen, hydrogen, and sulfur into blue,
green, and red hues.
The emission line and color combination has become well-known as the
Hubble palette.
The atomic emission is
powered by energetic radiation from
the central hot stars.
Their powerful winds and radiation sculpt and erode
the denser pillar shapes and clear out a
characteristic cavity light-years across
the center of the natal cloud.
Stars could still be forming inside the pillars by
gravitational collapse but as the pillars are
eroded away, any forming stars will ultimately be cutoff from their
reservoir of
star stuff.
This field of view spans about 40 light-years at the estimated distance
of NGC 7822.
APOD: 2021 October 13 - NGC 7822: Cosmic Question Mark
Explanation:
It may look like a huge cosmic question mark, but the big question really is
how does the bright gas and dark dust tell this nebula's history of
star formation.
At the edge of a giant
molecular cloud toward the northern
constellation Cepheus, the glowing star forming region NGC 7822
lies about 3,000
light-years away.
Within the nebula, bright edges and dark shapes stand out in this
colorful and detailed skyscape.
The 9-panel mosaic, taken over 28 nights with a small telescope in Texas,
includes data from
narrowband filters,
mapping emission from atomic oxygen, hydrogen, and sulfur into blue,
green, and red hues.
The emission line and color combination has become well-known as the
Hubble palette.
The atomic emission is powered by
energetic radiation from the central hot stars.
Their powerful winds and radiation sculpt and erode
the denser pillar shapes and clear out a
characteristic cavity light-years across
the center of the natal cloud.
Stars could still be
forming inside the pillars by
gravitational collapse but as the pillars are eroded away,
any forming stars will ultimately be cut off from their reservoir of
star stuff.
This field of view
spans over 40 light-years across
at the estimated distance of NGC 7822.
APOD: 2021 September 9 - M16 Close Up
Explanation:
A star cluster around 2 million years young surrounded by
natal clouds of dust and glowing gas,
M16 is also
known as The Eagle Nebula.
This beautifully detailed image
of the region adopts the colorful Hubble palette and includes
cosmic sculptures
made famous in
Hubble Space Telescope close-ups of the starforming complex.
Described as elephant trunks or
Pillars of Creation,
dense, dusty columns rising near the center are light-years in length but
are gravitationally contracting to form stars.
Energetic radiation from the cluster stars erodes material near
the tips, eventually exposing the embedded new stars.
Extending from the ridge of bright emission left of center
is another dusty starforming column known as the
Fairy of Eagle Nebula.
M16 lies about 7,000 light-years away,
an easy target for binoculars or small telescopes in a
nebula rich part of the sky
toward the split constellation
Serpens Cauda
(the tail of the snake).
APOD: 2021 July 29 - The Tulip and Cygnus X 1
Explanation:
This tall telescopic field of view
looks out along the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy
toward the nebula rich constellation
Cygnus
the Swan.
Popularly called the Tulip Nebula,
the brightest glowing cloud of interstellar gas and dust
above center is also found in the
1959 catalog
by astronomer Stewart Sharpless
as Sh2-101.
Nearly 70 light-years across the complex and beautiful Tulip Nebula
blossoms about 8,000 light-years away, shown in a
Hubble palette image that maps the glow of the
nebula's sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen ions into
red, green, and blue colors.
Ultraviolet radiation from young energetic stars
at the edge of the Cygnus
OB3 association, including
O star HDE 227018,
ionizes the atoms
and powers the emission from the Tulip Nebula.
Also in the field of view is microquasar
Cygnus X-1,
one of the strongest X-ray sources in planet Earth's sky.
Driven by powerful jets from a black hole accretion disk,
its fainter bluish curved shock front is
only just visible though, directly
above
the cosmic Tulip's petals near the top of the frame.
APOD: 2021 March 16 - IC 1318: The Butterfly Nebula in Gas and Dust
Explanation:
In the constellation of the
swan near the nebula of the pelican lies the
gas cloud of the butterfly
next to a star known as the hen.
That star, given the proper name
Sadr,
is just to the right of the featured frame, but the central
Butterfly Nebula, designated
IC 1318, is shown in high resolution.
The intricate patterns in the bright gas and
dark dust are caused by complex interactions between
interstellar winds,
radiation pressures, magnetic fields, and gravity.
The
featured telescopic view captures
IC 1318's
characteristic emission from ionized
sulfur,
hydrogen, and
oxygen atoms mapped to the
red, green, and blue hues of the popular
Hubble Palette.
The portion of the Butterfly Nebula pictured spans about 100
light years
and lies about 4000 light years away.
APOD: 2021 February 8 - WR23 and Interstellar Clouds in Carina
Explanation:
Stars can be like artists.
With interstellar gas as a canvas, a massive and tumultuous
Wolf-Rayet star
has created the picturesque ruffled half-circular filaments called WR23,
on the image left.
Additionally, the winds and radiation from a small cluster of stars,
NGC 3324, have sculpted a 35
light year cavity on the upper right,
with its right side appearing as a
recognizable face in profile.
This region's popular name is the
Gabriela Mistral Nebula for the famous
Chilean poet.
Together, these interstellar
clouds lie about 8,000 light-years away in the
Great Carina Nebula,
a complex stellar neighborhood harboring numerous clouds of gas and dust rich with
imagination
inspiring
shapes.
The featured telescopic view captures these nebulae's
characteristic emission from ionized sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen
atoms mapped to the red, green, and blue hues of the popular
Hubble Palette.
APOD: 2020 July 28 – NGC 6188: The Dragons of Ara
Explanation:
Dark shapes with bright edges winging their way through dusty
NGC 6188 are tens of light-years long.
The emission nebula is found near the edge of an
otherwise dark and large molecular cloud in the southern
constellation
Ara, about 4,000 light-years away.
Born in
that region only a few million years ago, the massive young
stars of the embedded Ara
OB1 association
sculpt the fantastic shapes and power the nebular glow with
stellar winds and intense ultraviolet radiation.
The recent star formation itself was likely triggered by
winds and supernova explosions, from previous generations of massive
stars, that swept up and compressed the molecular gas.
The
featured image accumulated over 10 hours through a backyard telescope
in Córdoba,
Argentina
and was false-colored using the
Hubble palette highlighting emission from
sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms
in red, green, and blue hues.
The field of view spans about four full Moons, corresponding to about 150 light
years at the estimated distance
of NGC 6188.
APOD: 2020 May 22 - South of Carina
Explanation:
With natal dust clouds in silhouette against glowing atomic gas,
this colorful and chaotic vista lies within one of the
largest star forming regions in the
Milky Way galaxy, the Great Carina Nebula.
The telescopic close-up
frames a field of view about 80 light-years
across, a little south and east of Eta Carinae, the nebula's
most energetic and enigmatic star.
Captured under suburban skies improved during national restrictions,
a composite of narrowband image data was used to create the
final image.
In it, characteristic emission from the nebula's
ionized sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms is mapped to
red, green, and blue hues,
a color palette also popular in Hubble Space Telescope images.
The celestial landscape
of bright ridges of emission bordered by
cool, obscuring dust lies about 7,500 light-years away toward
the southern constellation Carina.
APOD: 2020 January 7 - IC 405: The Flaming Star Nebula
Explanation:
Rippling dust and gas lanes give the Flaming Star Nebula its name.
The orange and purple colors of the nebula are present in
different regions and are created by different processes.
The bright star AE Aurigae, visible toward the image left, is so hot
it is blue,
emitting light so energetic it knocks
electrons away from surrounding gas.
When a proton recaptures an electron,
red light is frequently emitted (depicted here in orange).
The purple region's color is a mix of this
red light and blue light emitted by AE
Aurigae
but reflected to us by surrounding dust.
The two regions are referred to as
emission nebula and
reflection nebula, respectively.
Pictured here in the
Hubble color
palette, the Flaming Star Nebula, officially known as
IC 405, lies about 1500
light years distant, spans about 5 light years,
and is visible with a small telescope toward the constellation of the Charioteer
(Auriga).
APOD: 2019 August 10 - M16 Close Up
Explanation:
A star cluster around 2 million years young surrounded by
natal clouds of dust and glowing gas,
M16 is also
known as The Eagle Nebula.
This beautifully detailed image
of the region adopts the colorful Hubble palette and includes
cosmic
sculptures made famous in
Hubble Space Telescope close-ups of the starforming complex.
Described as elephant trunks or
Pillars of Creation, dense,
dusty columns rising near the center are light-years in length but
are gravitationally contracting
to
form stars.
Energetic radiation from the cluster stars erodes material near
the tips, eventually exposing the embedded new stars.
Extending from the ridge of bright emission left of center
is another dusty starforming column known as the
Fairy
of Eagle Nebula.
M16 lies about 7,000 light-years away,
an easy target for binoculars or small telescopes in a
nebula rich part of the sky
toward the split constellation
Serpens Cauda
(the tail of the snake).
APOD: 2019 March 16 - NGC 3324 in Carina
Explanation:
This
bright cosmic cloud
was sculpted by stellar
winds and radiation from the hot young stars
of open cluster NGC 3324.
With dust clouds in silhouette against its glowing atomic gas, the
pocket-shaped
star-forming region actually spans about 35 light-years.
It lies some 7,500 light-years away toward the nebula rich
southern constellation
Carina.
A composite of narrowband image data, the telescopic view
captures the characteristic emission from ionized sulfur, hydrogen,
and oxygen atoms mapped to red, green, and blue hues in the
popular Hubble Palette.
For some, the celestial landscape of bright ridges of
emission bordered by cool, obscuring
dust along
the right side create a recognizable face in profile.
The region's popular name is the
Gabriela
Mistral Nebula for the Nobel Prize winning Chilean poet.
APOD: 2018 November 14 - The Cave Nebula in Hydrogen, Oxygen, and Sulfur
Explanation:
What's inside this cosmic cave?
A stellar nursery 10 light-years deep.
The
featured skyscape is dominated by dusty
Sh2-155,
the Cave Nebula.
In the telescopic image, data taken through a
narrowband filters tracks the nebular glow of
hydrogen,
oxygen, and
sulfur,
colors that together form the
Hubble Palette.
About 2,400
light-years away, the scene lies along the plane of our
Milky Way Galaxy toward the royal northern constellation
of Cepheus.
Astronomical explorations of the region reveal that it has
formed at the boundary of the massive
Cepheus B molecular cloud
and the hot, young stars of the Cepheus OB 3
association.
The bright rim of
ionized
hydrogen gas is energized by radiation from the hot stars,
dominated by the bright star just to the left of the cave entrance.
Radiation driven ionization fronts
are likely triggering collapsing cores
and new star formation within.
APOD: 2018 November 7 - NGC 6188: The Dragons of Ara
Explanation:
Dark shapes with bright edges winging their way through dusty
NGC 6188 are tens of light-years long.
The emission nebula is found near the edge of an
otherwise dark large molecular cloud in the southern
constellation
Ara, about 4,000 light-years away.
Born in
that region only a few million years ago, the massive young
stars of the embedded Ara
OB1 association
sculpt the fantastic shapes and power the nebular glow with
stellar winds and intense ultraviolet radiation.
The recent
star
formation itself was likely triggered by
winds and supernova explosions, from previous generations of massive
stars, that swept up and compressed the molecular gas.
With image data from the
Chilescope
Observatory,
a false-color Hubble palette
was used to create
this gorgeous wide-field image
and shows emission from sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms
in red, green, and blue hues.
The field of view spans about four full Moons, corresponding to about 150 light
years at the estimated distance
of NGC 6188.
APOD: 2018 April 6 - NGC 3324 in Carina
Explanation:
This
bright cosmic cloud
was sculpted by stellar
winds and radiation from the hot young stars
of open cluster NGC 3324.
With dust clouds in silhouette against its glowing atomic gas, the
pocket-shaped
star-forming region actually spans about 35 light-years.
It lies some 7,500 light-years away toward the nebula rich
southern constellation
Carina.
A composite of narrowband image data, the telescopic view
captures the characteristic emission from ionized sulfur, hydrogen,
and oxygen atoms mapped to red, green, and blue hues in the
popular Hubble Palette.
For some, the celestial landscape of bright ridges of
emission bordered by cool, obscuring
dust along
the right side create a recognizable face in profile.
The region's popular name is the
Gabriela
Mistral Nebula for the Nobel Prize winning Chilean poet.
APOD: 2017 February 10 - Melotte 15 inthe Heart
Explanation:
Cosmic clouds form
fantastic shapes in
the central regions of emission nebula IC 1805.
The clouds are sculpted by stellar winds and radiation from
massive hot stars in the nebula's
newborn star cluster,
Melotte 15.
About 1.5 million years young,
the cluster stars are scattered in this
colorful
skyscape, along with dark
dust clouds
in silhouette against glowing atomic gas.
A composite of narrowband and broadband telescopic images, the
view spans about 15 light-years and includes emission
from ionized hydrogen, sulfur, and oxygen atoms mapped to
green,
red, and blue hues in the popular Hubble Palette.
Wider field images
reveal that IC 1805's simpler,
overall outline suggests its popular name -
The
Heart Nebula.
IC 1805 is located about 7,500 light years away toward the
boastful constellation Cassiopeia.
APOD: 2017 January 7 - Sharpless 249 and the Jellyfish Nebula
Explanation:
Normally faint and elusive, the Jellyfish Nebula is caught in
this alluring telescopic mosaic.
The scene is anchored below by bright star
Eta
Geminorum, at the foot of the
celestial
twin, while
the Jellyfish Nebula is the brighter arcing
ridge of emission with tentacles dangling below and left of center.
In fact, the cosmic jellyfish is part of bubble-shaped
supernova remnant IC 443, the expanding
debris cloud from a
massive
star that exploded.
Light from the explosion first reached planet Earth over 30,000 years
ago.
Like its cousin in
astrophysical waters the
Crab Nebula supernova remnant,
the Jellyfish Nebula is
known
to harbor a neutron star, the remnant of the collapsed stellar core.
An emission nebula cataloged as
Sharpless 249
fills the field at the upper right.
The Jellyfish Nebula is about 5,000 light-years away.
At that distance,
this narrowband
composite image
presented in the Hubble Palette would be about 300 light-years across.
APOD: 2016 November 11 - NGC 7822 in Cepheus
Explanation:
Hot, young stars and
cosmic pillars
of gas and dust seem to crowd into NGC 7822.
At the edge of a giant
molecular cloud toward the northern
constellation Cepheus, the glowing star forming region
lies about 3,000 light-years away.
Within the nebula, bright edges and dark shapes stand out in this
colorful
skyscape.
The image includes data from
narrowband filters,
mapping emission from atomic oxygen, hydrogen, and sulfur into blue,
green, and red hues.
The emission line and color combination has become well-known as the
Hubble palette.
The atomic emission is
powered by energetic radiation from
the central hot stars.
Their powerful winds and radiation sculpt and erode
the denser pillar shapes and clear out a
characteristic cavity light-years across
the center of the natal cloud.
Stars could still be forming inside the pillars by
gravitational collapse but as the pillars are
eroded away, any forming stars will ultimately be cutoff from their
reservoir of
star stuff.
This field of view spans over 40 light-years at the estimated distance
of NGC 7822.
APOD: 2016 February 5 - Massive Stars in NGC 6357
Explanation:
Massive stars lie within
NGC 6357, an expansive emission nebula complex
some 6,500 light-years away toward the tail of the constellation
Scorpius.
In fact, positioned near center
in this
ground-based close-up of NGC 6357,
star cluster Pismis 24
includes some of the most massive stars known
in the galaxy, stars with nearly 100 times the mass of the Sun.
The nebula's bright central region also contains dusty pillars of
molecular gas, likely hiding massive protostars from the
prying eyes
of optical instruments.
Intricate shapes in the nebula are carved as interstellar winds
and energetic radiation from the young and newly forming
massive
stars clear out the natal gas and dust and power the nebular
glow.
Enhancing the nebula's cavernous appearance, narrowband image data
was included in this composite color image in a
Hubble palette scheme.
Emission from sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms is shown in red
green and blue hues.
The alluring telescopic view spans about 50 light-years at
the estimated distance of NGC 6357.
APOD: 2014 October 18 - Melotte 15 in the Heart
Explanation:
Cosmic clouds form
fantastic shapes in
the central regions of emission nebula IC 1805.
The clouds are sculpted by stellar winds and radiation from
massive hot stars in the nebula's
newborn star cluster,
Melotte 15.
About 1.5 million years young,
the cluster stars are toward the right in this
colorful
skyscape, along with dark
dust clouds in
silhouette against glowing atomic gas.
A composite of narrowband and broadband telescopic images, the
view spans about 30 light-years and includes emission
from ionized hydrogen, sulfur, and oxygen atoms mapped to
green, red, and blue hues
in the popular Hubble Palette.
Wider field images
reveal that IC 1805's simpler,
overall outline suggests its popular name -
The
Heart Nebula.
IC 1805 is located about 7,500 light years away toward the
boastful constellation Cassiopeia.
APOD: 2013 June 14 - Sharpless 115
Explanation:
Sharpless
115 stands just north and west of Deneb,
the alpha star of Cygnus the Swan
in planet Earth's skies.
Noted in the
1959 catalog
by astronomer Stewart Sharpless (as Sh2-115)
the faint but lovely emission nebula lies along the edge of one of the
outer Milky Way's giant molecular clouds, about 7,500 light-years away.
Shining with
the light of
ionized atoms of hydrogen, sulfur, and oxygen
in this Hubble palette color composite image, the nebular glow is
powered by hot stars in star cluster Berkeley 90.
The cluster stars are likely only 100 million years old or so and
are still embedded in Sharpless 115.
But the stars' strong winds and radiation have
cleared away
much of their dusty, natal cloud.
At the emission nebula's estimated distance,
this
cosmic close-up spans just under 100 light-years.
APOD: 2012 November 30 - Clouds in Cygnus
Explanation:
Cosmic clouds of gas and dust
drift across this magnificent
mosaic covering a 12x12 degree field within the
high flying constellation Cygnus.
The collaborative skyscape, a combination of broad and narrow
band image data presented in the
Hubble palette, is anchored by
bright, hot, supergiant
star Deneb,
below center near the left edge.
Alpha star of Cygnus, Deneb, is the top of the Northern Cross asterism
and is seen here next to the dark void known as the Northern Coal Sack.
Below Deneb are the recognizable
North America and Pelican nebulae
(NGC 7000 and IC 5070).
Another supergiant star, Sadr (Gamma Cygni)
is near the center of the field
just above the bright wings of the Butterfly Nebula.
A line continuing up and right will encounter
the more compact Crescent Nebula and finally
the Tulip Nebula near the
top of the frame.
Most of these complex nebulosities are located
about 2,000 light-years away.
Along with the Sun, they lie in the
Orion
spiral arm of our Milky Way galaxy.
APOD: 2012 August 16 - NGC 6888: The Crescent Nebula
Explanation:
NGC 6888, also known as the Crescent Nebula, is a
cosmic bubble about 25 light-years across, blown by
winds from its central, bright, massive star.
This
colorful portrait of the nebula
uses narrow band image data combined in the
Hubble palette.
It shows emission from sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms in
the wind-blown nebula in red, green and blue hues.
NGC 6888's central star is classified as a
Wolf-Rayet star (WR 136).
The star is shedding its outer envelope in a strong
stellar
wind, ejecting the equivalent of the Sun's mass every 10,000 years.
The nebula's complex structures are likely the result of this
strong wind interacting with material ejected in an earlier phase.
Burning fuel at a prodigious rate and
near the
end of its stellar life
this star should ultimately go out with a bang in a
spectacular supernova explosion.
Found in the nebula rich
constellation Cygnus,
NGC 6888
is about 5,000 light-years away.
APOD: 2010 September 2 - The Bubble Nebula
Explanation:
Blown by the wind from a massive star, this interstellar
apparition has a surprisingly
familiar shape.
Cataloged as NGC 7635, it is also known simply
as The
Bubble Nebula.
Although it looks delicate, the 10 light-year diameter
bubble offers evidence of
violent processes at work.
Above and right of the Bubble's center is a hot,
O-type star, several hundred thousand
times more luminous and approximately 45 times more massive
than the Sun.
A fierce stellar wind and intense radiation from that
star has blasted out the
structure of glowing gas
against denser material
in a surrounding
molecular
cloud.
The intriguing Bubble Nebula lies a mere
11,000 light-years away toward the boastful constellation
Cassiopeia.
A false-color
Hubble palette was used to create
this sharp image and
shows emission from sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms in red,
green, and blue hues.
The image data
was recorded using a small telescope under
clear, steady skies, from Mount Wilson Observatory.
APOD: 2010 July 16 - Shaping NGC 6188
Explanation:
Dark shapes with bright edges winging their way through dusty
NGC
6188 are tens of light-years long.
The emission nebula is found near the edge of an
otherwise dark large molecular cloud in the southern
constellation
Ara, about 4,000 light-years away.
Formed in that region only a few million years ago, the massive young
stars of the embedded Ara
OB1 association
sculpt the fantastic shapes and
power the nebular glow with
stellar winds and intense ultraviolet radiation.
The recent
star
formation itself was likely triggered by
winds and supernova explosions, from previous generations of massive
stars, that swept up and compressed the molecular gas.
A false-color
Hubble palette was used to create
this sharp close-up image
and shows emission from sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms
in red, green, and blue hues.
At the estimated distance of NGC 6188, the picture spans
about 200 light-years.
APOD: 2008 May 2 - Shaping NGC 6188
Explanation:
Dark shapes with bright edges winging their way through dusty
NGC 6188
are tens of light-years long.
The emission nebula is found near the edge of an otherwise
dark large molecular cloud in the southern
constellation
Ara, about 4,000 light-years away.
Formed
in that region only a few million years ago, the massive young
stars of the embedded Ara
OB1 association
sculpt the fantastic shapes and power the nebular glow with
stellar winds and intense ultraviolet radiation.
The recent
star
formation itself was likely triggered by
winds and supernova explosions, from previous generations of massive
stars, that swept up and compressed the molecular gas.
A false-color
Hubble palette was used to
create the this gorgeous wide-field image
and shows emission from sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms
in red, green, and blue hues.
At the estimated distance of NGC 6188, the picture spans
about 300 light-years.