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Credit & Copyright: Sara Wager
Explanation:
Sometimes, stars form in walls -- bright walls of interstellar gas.
In this vivid skyscape, stars are forming in the W-shaped ridge of emission
known as the Cygnus Wall.
Part of a larger
emission
nebula with a distinctive outline popularly called
The North America Nebula,
the cosmic ridge spans about 20 light-years.
Constructed using narrowband data to highlight the telltale
reddish glow from
ionized hydrogen
atoms recombining with electrons, the image mosaic follows an
ionization front with fine details of dark, dusty forms in silhouette.
Sculpted
by energetic radiation from the region's young, hot, massive
stars, the dark shapes inhabiting the view are clouds of cool gas and dust
with stars likely forming within.
The North America Nebula itself, NGC 7000,
is about 1,500
light-years away.
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NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Cygnus Wall - North America Nebula - star formation
Publications with words: Cygnus Wall - North America Nebula - star formation
See also: