Tuesday, December 15, 2015

The Pelican Nebula in Gas Dust and Stars

The Pelican Nebula in Gas Dust and Stars: APOD: 2015 November 17 - The Pelican Nebula in Gas Dust and Stars



Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.


2015 November 17


See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available.



The Pelican Nebula in Gas, Dust, and Stars
Image Credit & Copyright: Roberto Colombari
Explanation: The Pelican Nebula is slowly being transformed. IC 5070, the official designation, is divided from the larger North America Nebula by a molecular cloud filled with dark dust. The Pelican, however, receives much study because it is a particularly active mix of star formation and evolving gas clouds. The featured picture was produced in three specific colors -- light emitted by sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen -- that can help us to better understand these interactions. The light from young energetic stars is slowly transforming the cold gas to hot gas, with the advancing boundary between the two, known as an ionization front, visible in bright orange on the right. Particularly dense tentacles of cold gas remain. Millions of years from now this nebula might no longer be known as the Pelican, as the balance and placement of stars and gas will surely leave something that appears completely different.

Yearly Astronomy Review: APOD editor to speak in January in Philadelphia and New York City
Tomorrow's picture: sudden jet

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