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Credit & Copyright: Data - ESO/INAF/R. Colombari/E. Recurt,
Processing -
R. Colombari
Explanation:
South of Antares, in the tail of
the nebula-rich constellation
Scorpius,
lies emission nebula IC 4628.
Nearby hot,
massive stars, millions of years young,
irradiate the
nebula with invisible ultraviolet light, stripping electrons
from atoms.
The electrons eventually recombine with the atoms to produce the
visible nebular glow,
dominated by the red emission of hydrogen.
At an estimated distance of 6,000 light-years,
the region
shown is about 250 light-years across,
spanning over three full moons on the sky.
The nebula is also
cataloged as Gum 56 for Australian astronomer
Colin Stanley Gum,
but seafood-loving astronomers might
know this cosmic cloud as the Prawn Nebula.
The tantalizing color image
is a new astronomical composition using data
from the European Southern Observatory's wide field OmegCAM and
amateur images made under
dark skies
on the Canary Island of Tenerife.
Remembering John Glenn
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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: