Sagittarius Star Cloud
20.05.2001

Stars come in all different colors. The color of a star indicates its surface temperature, an important property used to assign each star a spectral type. Most stars in the above Sagittarius Star Cloud are orange or red and relatively faint, as our Sun would appear.

M24: A Sagittarius Starscape
21.09.2004

Many vast star fields in the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy are rich in clouds of dust, and gas. First and foremost, visible in the above picture are millions of stars, many of which are similar to our Sun.

Sagittarius and the Central Milky Way
5.06.1996

What does the center of our Milky Way Galaxy look like? No one knows! It is not possible to see the Galactic center in light our eyes are sensitive to because the thick dust in the plane of our Galaxy obscures it.

Nebulosity in Sagittarius
10.08.1997

What causes the colors in this beautiful nebulosity in Sagittarius? Dubbed NGC 6589 and NGC 6590, the colors of this nebulosity, are caused by gas and dust. The blue color of the nebula nearest the bright stars is caused by reflection off interstellar dust.

Nebula Nova Cygni Turns On
15.12.1996

Old photographs show no evidence of the above nebula. In 1992, a white dwarf star in Cygnus blew off its outer layers in a classical nova explosion: an event called Nova Cygni 1992. Light flooded the local interstellar neighborhood, illuminated this existing gas cloud, excited the existing hydrogen, and hence caused the red emission.

The Firework Nebula
4.07.1998

Imaged by the WIYN Telescope, the Firework Nebula is the result of a type of stellar explosion called a nova. In a nova, a nuclear detonation on the surface of a compact white dwarf star blasts away material that has been dumped on its surface by a companion star.

A Nova In Aquila
14.12.1999

On December 1st, experienced observers patroling the night sky with binoculars noticed what seemed to be a new star in the constellation of Aquila (The Eagle). It wasn't really a new star though.

Introducing Nova Velorum 1999
24.05.1999

A bright nova was discovered Saturday that is currently visible to the unaided eye in southern skies. Nova Velorum 1999 was recorded near visual magnitude 3 independently by discoverers Peter Williams and Alan C. Gilmore (Mt. John U. Obs.), making it more luminous than many famous bright stars.

Nova Over Iran
18.02.2007

A bright new nova is being studied by astronomers. The officially dubbed Nova Scorpii 2007 has become so bright in recent days that it is now visible to the unaided eye. Adventurous early morning sky enthusiasts should look in dark skies toward the constellation of the Scorpion, just below Jupiter and Antares.

Nebula Nova Cygni Turns On
25.08.2002

Old photographs show no evidence of the above nebula. In 1992, a white dwarf star toward the constellation of Cygnus blew off its outer layers in a classical nova explosion: an event called Nova Cygni 1992.