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Credit & Copyright: Josep Drudis
Explanation:
These three bright nebulae are often featured on telescopic tours of the
constellation Sagittarius and the crowded starfields of
the central Milky Way.
In fact, 18th century cosmic tourist
Charles
Messier cataloged two of them;
M8, the large nebula above and left of center,
and colorful M20 near the bottom of the frame.
The third emission region includes
NGC 6559, right of M8 and
separated from the larger nebula by a dark dust lane.
All three are stellar nurseries about
five thousand light-years or so distant.
Over a hundred light-years across the expansive M8
is also known as the Lagoon Nebula.
M20's popular moniker is the Trifid.
Glowing hydrogen gas creates the dominant red color of the
emission nebulae.
In striking contrast, blue hues in the
Trifid are due to dust reflected starlight.
The
colorful composite skyscape was recorded with two different
telescopes to capture a widefield image of the
area and individual close-ups at higher resolution.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: M 8 - M 20 - NGC 6559 - emission nebula
Publications with words: M 8 - M 20 - NGC 6559 - emission nebula
See also:
- APOD: 2024 May 1 Á IC 1795: The Fishhead Nebula
- APOD: 2024 April 24 Á Dragons Egg Bipolar Emission Nebula
- APOD: 2024 March 13 Á The Seagull Nebula
- APOD: 2024 February 21 Á Seagull Nebula over Pinnacles Peak
- NGC 1893 and the Tadpoles of IC 410
- The Light, the Dark, and the Dusty
- APOD: 2023 December 13 Á Deep Field: The Heart Nebula