In this image from ESO’s Very Large Telescope, light from blue stars irradiates the gas left over from those stars’ recent formation in the emission nebula, LHA 120-N55. The abundant hydrogen atom glow red.
Image Credit: ESO
In the middle of this little-known nebula called Gum 41, brilliant hot young stars are giving off energetic radiation causing the surrounding hydrogen to glow a characteristic red. The nebula is located 7300 light-years from Earth. Australian astronomer Colin Gum discovered it on photographs taken at the Mount Stromlo Observatory near Canberra, and included it in his catalogue of 84 emission nebulae, published in 1955. Gum 41 is actually one small part of a bigger structure called the Lambda Centauri Nebula, also known by the more exotic name of the Running Chicken Nebula.
Image Credit: ESO
In this image from ESO’s Very Large Telescope, light from blue stars irradiates the gas left over from those stars’ recent formation. The result is a colorful emission nebula, LHA 120-N55
Image Credit: ESO
Gum 26 is a region new star formation located roughly 20,000 light-years away in the southern constellation of Vela (The Sails). It’s also an emission nebula because the intense ultraviolet radiation from the newborn stars ionizes the surrounding hydrogen gas, causing it to emit a faint pinkish glow.
Image Credit: ESO
RCW 36 (aka Gum 20) is an emission nebula containing an open cluster in the constellation Vela. It is one of the most massive-star formation near to our Solar System, only sbout 2300 light-years away.
Image Credit: ESO
In the middle of this little-known nebula called Gum 41, brilliant hot young stars are giving off energetic radiation causing the surrounding hydrogen to glow a characteristic red. The nebula is located 7300 light-years from Earth. Australian astronomer Colin Gum discovered it on photographs taken at the Mount Stromlo Observatory near Canberra, and included it in his catalogue of 84 emission nebulae, published in 1955. Gum 41 is actually one small part of a bigger structure called the Lambda Centauri Nebula, also known by the more exotic name of the Running Chicken Nebula.
Image Credit: ESO
NGC 2359 (aka Thor’s Helmet) is an emission nebula in the constellation Canis Major. The nebula is about 15,000 light-years away and 30 light-years across. The central star is an extremely hot giant thought to be in a brief, pre-supernova stage of evolution. This image was taken by the Very Large Telescope at the European Southern Observatory in Chile.
Image Credit: ESO
