Astronomy Picture of the Day——独角兽里的星云

Cosmic Clouds in the Unicorn 
Image Credit & Copyright: Bray Falls

Explanation: Interstellar clouds of hydrogen gas and dust abound in this gorgeous skyscape. The 3 degree wide field of view stretches through the faint but fanciful constellationMonoceros, the Unicorn. A star forming region cataloged as NGC 2264 is centered, a complex jumble of cosmic gas, dust and stars about 2,700 light-years distant. It mixes reddish emission nebulae excited by energetic light from newborn stars with dark dust clouds. Where the otherwise obscuring dust clouds lie close to hot, young stars they also reflect starlight, forming blue reflection nebulae. A few light-years across, a simple sculpted shape known as the Cone Nebula is near center. Outlined by the red glow of hydrogen gas, the cone points toward the left and bright, blue-white S Monocerotis. Itself a multiple system of massive, hot stars S Mon is adjacent to bluish reflection nebulae and the convoluted Fox Fur nebula. Expansive dark markings on the sky are silhouetted by a larger region of fainter emission with yellowish open star cluster Trumpler 5 near the top of the frame. The curious compact cometary shape right of center is known as Hubble's Variable Nebula.

独角兽里的星云

在这幅美丽的宇宙照片中，展现了由氢气和宇宙尘埃构成的星云。这片3°视角宽的天区位于暗淡的“独角兽”——麒麟座内。照片中心是被称为NGC 2264的恒星诞生区，距离地球约2,700光年，混杂着气体、宇宙尘埃和恒星。其中既有被新生恒星的高能光线所激发的红色发射星云，也有暗淡的尘埃云。那些靠近炽热年轻恒星的尘埃云也会反射星光，即蓝色的反射星云。在照片中心附近，有一个几光年大小的锥状星云，好像一尊雕塑。它的轮廓呈现出氢气的红色辉光，锥角指向左边明亮的麒麟座S。麒麟座S是一个由大质量炽热恒星组成的多重系统，它旁边是蓝色的反射星云和卷曲的狐皮星云。照片顶部还有一个黄色的疏散星团Trumpler 5。照片中心靠右可以看到一个奇怪的像彗星一样的天体，它是哈勃变光星云。

NASA

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