One of the most identifiable nebulae in the sky, the Horse head Nebula in Orion, is part of a large, dark,molecular cloud. Also known as Barnard 33, the unusual shape was firstdiscovered on aphotographic plate in the late 1800s. The red glow originates from hydrogen gas predominantly behind the nebula, ionized by the nearby bright star Sigma Orionis. The darkness of the Horse head is caused mostly by thick dust, although the lower part of the Horse head's neck casts a shadow to the left. Streams of gas leavingthe nebula are funneled by a strongmagnetic field. Bright spots in the Horse head Nebula's base are young stars just in the process of forming. Light takes about 1,500 years to reach us from the Horse head Nebula. The above image is a digital combination of images taken in blue, green, red, and hydrogen-alpha light from the Argentina, and an image taken in infrared light by the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope.
July 28, 2014
Horsehead Nebula
One of the most identifiable nebulae in the sky, the Horse head Nebula in Orion, is part of a large, dark,molecular cloud. Also known as Barnard 33, the unusual shape was firstdiscovered on aphotographic plate in the late 1800s. The red glow originates from hydrogen gas predominantly behind the nebula, ionized by the nearby bright star Sigma Orionis. The darkness of the Horse head is caused mostly by thick dust, although the lower part of the Horse head's neck casts a shadow to the left. Streams of gas leavingthe nebula are funneled by a strongmagnetic field. Bright spots in the Horse head Nebula's base are young stars just in the process of forming. Light takes about 1,500 years to reach us from the Horse head Nebula. The above image is a digital combination of images taken in blue, green, red, and hydrogen-alpha light from the Argentina, and an image taken in infrared light by the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope.
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