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Credit & Copyright: Matt Russell
Explanation:
What powers the Heart Nebula?
The large emission nebula dubbed
IC 1805 looks, in whole, like a
human heart.
The nebula glows brightly in red light
emitted by its most prominent element:
hydrogen.
The red glow and the larger shape are all created by a
small group of stars near the
nebula's center.
A close up spanning about 30 light years contains many of these stars is
shown above .
This open cluster of stars contains a few
bright stars nearly 50 times the mass of our Sun,
many dim stars only a fraction of the mass of our Sun, and an
absent microquasar
that was expelled millions of years ago.
The Heart Nebula is located about 7,500 light years away toward the
constellation of
Cassiopeia.
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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: emission nebula
Publications with words: emission nebula
See also:
- APOD: 2024 May 1 Á IC 1795: The Fishhead Nebula
- APOD: 2024 April 24 Á Dragons Egg Bipolar Emission Nebula
- APOD: 2024 March 13 Á The Seagull Nebula
- APOD: 2024 February 21 Á Seagull Nebula over Pinnacles Peak
- NGC 1893 and the Tadpoles of IC 410
- The Light, the Dark, and the Dusty
- APOD: 2023 December 13 Á Deep Field: The Heart Nebula