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HH 901/902 Details

HH 901/902 Details
This is a series of close-up views of the complex gas structures in a small portion of the Carina Nebula. The nebula is a cold cloud of predominantly hydrogen gas. It is laced with dust, which makes the cloud opaque. The cloud is being eroded by a gusher of ultraviolet light from young stars in the region. They sculpt a variety of fantasy shapes, many forming tadpole-like structures. In some frames, smaller pieces of nebulosity can be seen freely drifting, such as the 2.3-trillion-mile-long structure at upper right. The most striking feature is a 3.5-trillion-mile-long horizontal jet in the upper left frame. It is being blasted into space by a young star hidden in the tip of the pillar-like structure. A bowshock has formed near the tip of the jet.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    10h 44m 5.25s
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    -59° 29' 44.99"
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Carina
  • Distance
    DistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.
    7,500 light-years (2,300 parsecs)

About the Data

  • Data Description
    Data DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
    Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.
    This image was created from HST data from proposal 12050: M. Livio, K. Noll, M. Mutchler, Z. Levay, L. Frattare, W. Januszewski, C. Christian, and T. Borders (Hubble 20th Anniversary Team, STScI).
  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    HST>WFC3/UVIS
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    February 1-2, 2010, Exposure Time: 9.3 hours
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    F673N ([S II]), F657N (H-alpha+[N II]), and F502N ([O III])
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    HH 901 and HH 902 in the Carina Nebula
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Carina Nebula Star-forming Pillars and Herbig-Haro Objects with Jets
  • Release Date
    April 22, 2010
  • Science Release
    Starry-Eyed Hubble Celebrates 20 Years of Awe and Discovery
  • Credits
    NASA, ESA, Hubble 20th Anniversary Team, Mario Livio (STScI)

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HH 901/902 Details
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

This image is a composite of separate exposures made by the WFC3 instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Each filter was used to sample a narrow wavelength range over a broad range of the visible colors. The composite color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Red: F673N ([S II]) Green: F657N (H-alpha+[N II]) Blue: F502N ([O III])

Compass and Scale
Compass and ScaleAn astronomical image with a scale that shows how large an object is on the sky, a compass that shows how the object is oriented on the sky, and the filters with which the image was made.

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Details

Last Updated
Feb 17, 2025
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, MD
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov