Ghost of the Cepheus Flare
Explanation:
Spooky shapes seem to haunt
this
starry expanse, drifting through the night in the royal constellation
Cepheus.
Of course, the shapes are cosmic dust clouds faintly visible
in dimly reflected starlight.
Far from your
own
neighborhood on planet Earth, they lurk at the edge of the
Cepheus Flare
molecular cloud complex some 1,200 light-years away.
Over 2 light-years across the ghostly nebula and relatively
isolated
Bok globule, also known as
vdB 141
or
Sh2-136,
is near the center of the field.
The core of the dark cloud on the right is collapsing and is
likely a binary star system in the
early stages of formation.
Even so, if the spooky shapes could talk, they might well wish you a
happy Halloween.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
