Tulip Nebula and Black Hole Cygnus X-1

Explanation: When can you see a black hole, a tulip, and a swan all at once? At night -- if the timing is right, and if your telescope is pointed in the right direction . The complex and beautiful Tulip Nebula blossoms about 8,000 light-years away toward the constellation of Cygnus the Swan. Ultraviolet radiation from young energetic stars at the edge of the Cygnus OB3 association , including O star HDE 227018, ionizes the atoms and powers the emission from the Tulip Nebula. Stewart Sharpless cataloged this nearly 70 light-years across reddish glowing cloud of interstellar gas and dust in 1959 , as Sh2-101 . Also in the featured field of view is the black hole Cygnus X-1 , which is also a microquasar because it is one of strongest X-ray sources in planet Earth's sky. Blasted by powerful jets from a lurking black hole , its fainter bluish curved shock front is only faintly visible beyond the cosmic Tulip's petals, near the right side of the frame.

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