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Credit & Copyright: Douglas J. Struble
(Future World Media)
Explanation:
Stars can create huge and intricate
dust sculptures from the dense and dark
molecular clouds from which they are born.
The tools the stars use to carve their detailed works are
high energy light and fast
stellar winds.
The heat they generate evaporates the dark molecular
dust
as well as causing ambient
hydrogen gas to disperse and
glow red.
Pictured here,
a new open cluster of stars designated
IC 1590 is
nearing completion around the intricate
interstellar dust structures in the
emission nebula
NGC 281,
dubbed the
Pac-man Nebula because of its
overall shape.
The dust cloud on the upper left is classified as a
Bok Globule as it may
gravitationally collapse
and form a star -- or stars.
The Pacman Nebula lies about 10,000
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: dust cloud - NGC 281 - bok globule
Publications with words: dust cloud - NGC 281 - bok globule
See also: