#reflection nebulae

Photo of the Pleiades (Messier 45) I took to test my new telescope. This is an open cluster of stars situated about 440 light years from earth, the brighter stars of the cluster are visible with the naked eye (around 5 to 10 stars visible depending of the light pollution, weather and eye accommodation do darkness). Unfortunately, the nebulosity, which I composed of dust clouds reflecting the light from the bright stars, is only visible in photos or with (relatively) large telescope. The cluster is about 100 million years old which is young (for an astronomical object), the more visible stars are hot blue giants, but many other, less visible, stars are present in the cluster. This cluster due to its high visibility has taken an important place in many cultures and mythologies.

This is the Running Man Nebula! ✨✨✨

The center of this mysterious nebula has the silhouette of a running man in space. Part of the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex, this reflection nebula glows due to the energy from hot, young stars across the cosmic cloud! 💖💖💖

IRAS 12196-6300

IRAS 12196-6300 is an emission line star located about 2,300 light years away towards the constellation Crux. Displayed on a spectrum, the star’s light displays as an array of colors marked by dark and bright lines. These lines follow characteristic patterns of atoms and molecules, and allow astronomers to determine the chemical composition of the star.

IRAS 12196-6300 is a very young star, much younger than our Sun. It has yet to begin burning hydrogen at its core, and is still surrounded by dust clouds likely remaining from its formation. Light from the star reflects off these clouds, creating beautiful reflection nebulae. 

This is NGC 2626! ✨✨✨

Within this nebula alone, there are a plethora of newborn stars known as T Tauri stars that make it a great target for analyzing star formation! Located in the constellation Vela, this nebula unfortunately doesn’t get a lot of attention... 😥😥😥