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APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
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.
Horsehead Rides Again
Explanation: Difficult to see in small telescopes, the Horsehead nebula was recently selected by internet voters as a target for the Hubble Space Telescope . Above (top) is Hubble's detailed view of the dark cosmic dust cloud , released to celebrate the 11th anniversary of the workhorse orbiting observatory. Below it is a stunning ground-based view from the NOAO 0.9 meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory which shows the dark Horsehead against a wider edge-on expanse of glowing gas. Dramatic dust and gas clouds in and around the Horsehead are part of a large, complex stellar nursery seen towards the constellation of Orion . This star forming region is about 1,500 light-years distant and includes the well known Orion nebula . The Horsehead nebula is found just south of Zeta Orionis , the easternmost star in Orion's belt.
| Date | April 26, 2001 |
|---|---|
| Credit |
Credit: (Top) NASA , NOAO , ESA , Hubble Heritage Team ( STScI / AURA ) (Bottom) T.A. Rector (NOAO/AURA/ NSF ), Hubble Heritage Team; Copyright |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |