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Credit & Copyright: Rogelio Bernal
Andreo (Deep Sky Colors)
Explanation:
This composition in
stardust
covers over 8 degrees on the northern sky.
The mosaicked field of view is west of the familiar Pleiades star cluster,
toward the zodiacal
constellation
Aries and the plane of our
Milky Way Galaxy.
At right in the deep skyscape is bluish Epsilon Arietis,
a star visible to the naked-eye and about 330 light-years away.
Reflecting starlight in the region,
dusty nebulae
LBN762, LBN753, and LBN743 sprawl
left to right
across the field, but are likely some 1,000 light-years away.
At that estimated distance, the cosmic canvas is over 140 light-years across.
Near the edge of a large
molecular
cloud, their dark interiors can hide newly
formed stars and young stellar objects
or protostars from prying optical telescopes.
Collapsing due to
self-gravity, the
protostars
form around dense cores embedded in the molecular cloud.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
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: reflection nebula - dust
Publications with words: reflection nebula - dust
See also:
- NGC 7023: The Iris Nebula
- APOD: 2024 January 29 Á The Pleiades: Seven Dusty Sisters
- The Light, the Dark, and the Dusty
- APOD: 2023 October 30 Á Reflections of the Ghost Nebula
- The Ghosts of Gamma Cas
- APOD: 2023 September 26 Á IC 4592: The Blue Horsehead Reflection Nebula
- NGC 1333: Stellar Nursery in Perseus