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Credit & Copyright: Valerio Avitabile
Explanation:
Light-years across, this
suggestive shape known as the Seahorse Nebula
appears in silhouette against a rich, luminous background of stars.
Seen toward the royal northern constellation of Cepheus,
the dusty, obscuring clouds are part of a Milky Way
molecular cloud some 1,200 light-years distant.
It is also listed as Barnard 150 (B150), one of 182
dark markings of the sky
cataloged in the early 20th century
by astronomer E. E. Barnard.
Packs of low mass stars are forming
within,
but their collapsing cores are only visible at long
infrared wavelengths.
Still, the colorful stars of Cepheus add to this
pretty, galactic
skyscape.
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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: dust - molecular cloud
Publications with words: dust - molecular cloud
See also:
- APOD: 2026 July 22 Á The Corona Australis Cloud and the Chandelier Cluster
- APOD: 2026 July 9 Á The Red Glow of the Cosmic Bat Nebula
- APOD: 2026 July 7 Á NGC 6188: Dragons of Ara
- APOD: 2026 May 19 Á NGC 2170: The Angel Nebula
- LDN 1622: Dark Nebula in Orion
- NGC 7023: The Iris Nebula
- A Dark Seahorse in Cepheus