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Credit & Copyright: Martin Pugh
Explanation:
Look through the cosmic cloud cataloged as NGC 281
and you might miss the stars of open cluster
IC 1590.
But, formed
within
the nebula, that cluster's young, massive stars
ultimately power the pervasive
nebular glow.
The eye-catching shapes looming in
this portrait
of NGC 281 are sculpted columns and dense
dust globules
seen in silhouette, eroded by intense, energetic winds and radiation
from the hot cluster stars.
If they survive long enough,
the dusty structures could also be sites of future star formation.
Playfully called
the Pacman Nebula because of its overall shape,
NGC 281 is about 10,000 light-years away in the constellation
Cassiopeia.
This sharp composite image was made through
narrow-band filters,
combining emission from the nebula's hydrogen, sulfur, and oxygen
atoms in green, red, and blue hues.
It spans over 80 light-years at the estimated distance of NGC 281.
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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 - pacman nebula - star formation
Publications with words: dust - pacman nebula - star formation
See also:
- NGC 7023: The Iris Nebula
- APOD: 2026 January 12 Á Meteor Dust
- APOD: 2025 December 28 Á NGC 1898: Globular Cluster in the Large Magellanic Cloud
- A Dark Seahorse in Cepheus
- NGC 253: Dusty Island Universe
- APOD: 2025 October 29 Á Dust Shapes of the Ghost Nebula
- APOD: 2025 October 21 Á IC 1805: The Heart Nebula