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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.
NGC 1579: Trifid of the North
Explanation: Colorful NGC 1579 resembles the better known Trifid Nebula, but lies much farther north in planet Earth's sky, in the heroic constellation Perseus . About 2,100 light-years away and 3 light-years across, NGC 1579 is a captivating study in color. Like the Trifid , NGC 1579 is a dusty star forming region providing contrasting emission and reflection nebulae in the same field - the characteristic red glow of hydrogen gas and the blue of reflected starlight. Also like the Trifid , dark dust lanes are prominent in the nebula's central regions. In fact, obscuring dust is pervasive in NGC 1579 , drastically dimming the visible light from the massive, young, hot stars still embedded in the cosmic cloud.
| Date | May 25, 2006 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Credit & Copyright: R. Jay GaBany ( Cosmotography.com ) |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |