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Credit & Copyright: Don Goldman
Explanation:
Pillars of gas, dust, and young, hot stars fill the center
of NGC 7822.
At the edge of a giant
molecular cloud toward the northern
constellation
Cepheus, the glowing star forming region
lies about 3,000 light-years away.
Within the nebula, bright edges and tantalizing shapes are
highlighted in
this colorful skyscape.
The image includes data from both broadband and
narrowband filters,
mapping emission from atomic oxygen, hydrogen, and sulfur into blue, green,
and red hues.
The atomic emission is
powered by the energetic radiation from
the hot stars, whose powerful winds and radiation also sculpt
and erode the denser pillar shapes.
Stars could still be forming
inside the pillars by
gravitational collapse,
but as the pillars are
eroded away, any forming stars will ultimately be cutoff from their
reservoir of
star stuff.
This field spans around 30 light-years at the estimated distance
of NGC 7822.
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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 - star formation
Publications with words: emission nebula - star formation
See also:
- APOD: 2025 December 28 Á NGC 1898: Globular Cluster in the Large Magellanic Cloud
- NGC 253: Dusty Island Universe
- APOD: 2025 October 21 Á IC 1805: The Heart Nebula
- Young Suns of NGC 7129
- APOD: 2025 December 17 Á W5: The Soul Nebula
- APOD: 2025 December 9 Á The Heart of the Soul Nebula
- APOD: 2025 September 19 Á The NGC 6914 Complex