2023年09月26日:IC 4592：蓝马头反射星云-（IC 4592: The Blue Horsehead Reflection Nebula） 2023年09月26日:IC 4592：蓝马头反射星云-（IC 4592: The Blue Horsehead Reflection Nebula）--原图下载{mtitle title="IC 4592：蓝马头反射星云"/}Image Credit & Copyright: Antoine & Dalia Grelin说明: 你看到马头了吗？你见到的不是猎户座着名的马头星云，而是另一个只有在较深空影像里，形似马头的外观才会显现的昏暗星云。这张影像所呈现的分子云複合体的主体，是编录号为IC 4592的反射星云。反射星云是由微小的尘埃所组成，正常情况下看起来很黝黑，不过如果它反射附近炽热恒星的可见光，色泽却可能变得很蓝。在上面这个案例里，大部分受到反射的星光，是源自位于马 眼的恒星。 这颗恒星是尾宿九（Nu Scorpii）的成员星之一，而尾宿九则是天蝎座数个明亮多合星系统之一。在影像的中右方，可以看见环拱着2颗恒星、名为IC 4601的第二个反射星云。{lamp/}原文：{mtitle title="IC 4592: The Blue Horsehead Reflection Nebula"/}Image Credit & Copyright: Antoine & Dalia GrelinExplanation: Do you see the horse's head? What you are seeing is not the famous Horsehead nebula toward Orion, but rather a fainter nebula that only takes on a familiar form with deeper imaging. The main part of the here-imaged molecular cloud complex is reflection nebula IC 4592. Reflection nebulas are made up of very fine dust that normally appears dark but can look quite blue when reflecting the visible light of energetic nearby stars. In this case, the source of much of the reflected light is a star at the eye of the horse. That star is part of Nu Scorpii, one of the brighter star systems toward the constellation of the Scorpion (Scorpius). A second reflection nebula dubbed IC 4601 is visible surrounding two stars above and to the right of the image center.

2023年08月07日:鹈鹕星云的云气、尘埃与恆星-（The Pelican Nebula in Gas, Dust, and Stars） 2023年08月07日:鹈鹕星云的云气、尘埃与恆星-（The Pelican Nebula in Gas, Dust, and Stars）--原图下载{mtitle title="鹈鹕星云的云气、尘埃与恆星"/}Credit & Copyright: Abe Jones说明: 鹈鹕星云正慢慢变形之中。此星云正式的编录号为IC 5070，它和较大的北美洲星云，以一个满是黝黑尘埃的分子云相隔。因为鹈鹕星云是个特别活耀的恒星形成区和演化中气体云之混合体，故常成为天文研究的焦点。这张主题照片是一幅三色合成影像，分别记录了来自硫、氢与氧的光，以促进我们对恒星诞生区和星云之间交互作用的了解。来自年轻亮星的星光，正缓缓把冰冷的云气转变成炽热的气体，而两者之间称为电离前沿的分界，可见诸影像右侧的明亮橙红区域。然而，在此区域内仍有一些特别緻密的触鬚状冰冷云气残存下来。在数百万年之后，随着恒星与云气的平衡及位置改变，此星云的外观一定会截然不同，届时它可能不再是鹈鹕星云。{lamp/}原文：{mtitle title="The Pelican Nebula in Gas, Dust, and Stars"/}Credit & Copyright: Abe JonesExplanation: The Pelican Nebula is slowly being transformed. IC 5070 (the official designation) is divided from the larger North America Nebula by a molecular cloud filled with dark dust. The Pelican, however, receives much study because it is a particularly active mix of star formation and evolving gas clouds. The featured picture was produced in three specific colors -- light emitted by sulfur, hydrogen, and oxygen -- that can help us to better understand these interactions. The light from young energetic stars is slowly transforming the cold gas to hot gas, with the advancing boundary between the two, known as an ionization front, visible in bright orange on the right.Particularly dense tentacles of cold gas remain. Millions of years from now, the Pelican nebula, bounded by dark nebula LDN 935, might no longer be known as the Pelican, as the balance and placement of stars and gas will surely leave something that appears completely different.

2023年06月14日:鲨鱼星云-（The Shark Nebula） 2023年06月14日:鲨鱼星云-（The Shark Nebula）--原图下载{mtitle title="鲨鱼星云"/}Image Credit & Copyright: Stephen Kennedy说明: 地球上没有海洋大到可以容下鲨鱼星云。不过，因为它是由星际气体和尘埃所构成的，因此这条幽灵般的猛兽对人类无害。这幅主题影像所呈现的黝黑尘埃，有点像雪茄烟雾，而且通常形成于巨星的低温大气里。这些尘埃与气体一同被排出，后来在重力的作用下聚成暗星云，而大质量恒星有时会以高能星光和高速恒星风为工具，在这些胎衣云上刻画出错综複杂的结构。恒星所散发的热除了会蒸发幽暗的分子云之外，也会激发周围的氢气发出泛红的辉光。在云气解体的过程中，类似地球天空中的水汽云，人类偶会在这些庞大星云里聨想到熟悉常见的事物。其内有数个小尘埃云（Lynds暗星云1235、Van den Bergh 149和150）的鲨鱼星云，位在北天的仙王座方向，大小约为15光年，距离则在650光年左右。(Shark nebula 鲨鱼星云){lamp/}原文：{mtitle title="The Shark Nebula"/}Image Credit & Copyright: Stephen KennedyExplanation: There is no sea on Earth large enough to contain the Shark nebula.This predator apparition poses us no danger as it is composed only of interstellar gas and dust.Dark dust like that featured here is somewhat like cigarette smoke and created in the cool atmospheres of giant stars.After being expelled with gas and gravitationally recondensing, massive stars may carve intricate structures into their birth cloud using their high energy light and fast stellar winds as sculpting tools. The heat they generate evaporates the murky molecular cloud as well as causing ambient hydrogen gas to disperse and glow red. During disintegration, we humans can enjoy imagining these great clouds as common icons, like we do for water clouds on Earth.Including smaller dust nebulae such as Lynds Dark Nebula 1235 and Van den Bergh 149 & 150, the Shark nebula spans about 15 light years and lies about 650 light years away toward the constellation of the King of Aethiopia (Cepheus).

2023年03月10日:猎户大星云与跑者星云-（Orion and the Running Man） 2023年03月10日:猎户大星云与跑者星云-（Orion and the Running Man）--原图下载{mtitle title="猎户大星云与跑者星云"/}Image Credit &Copyright:Abraham Jones说明: 鲜少有宇宙景观像猎户大星云这么善于激发想像力。而肉眼中通常看似暗淡夜空光斑的此星云，于今年1月寒夜、摄于西维吉尼亚州幽暗天空下的这幅清晰的望远镜影像里，这个最邻近的大恒星形成区横跨了整个视野。在影像里，亦称为M42的猎户大星云之明亮云气，环拱在炽热年轻恒星的周围。位在一个庞大星际分子云边缘的猎户大星云，直径约为40光年，距离我们仅有1,500光年远，与太阳位在银河系的同一条旋臂上。这些吸睛星云--包括泛蓝尘埃反射星云NGC1977及其他位在影像顶部的星云，只占我们附近的银河系天区里，大量的恒星形成物质之一小部分。在猎户大星云这个备受探索的恒星育婴室里，天文学家发现了非常多的婴儿期太阳系。{lamp/}原文：{mtitle title="Orion and the Running Man"/}Image Credit &Copyright:Abraham JonesExplanation: Few cosmic vistas excite the imagination likeThe Great Nebula in Orion.Visible as a faint celestial smudgeto the naked-eye,the nearest large star-forming region sprawls acrossthis sharp telescopic image,recorded on a cold January night in dark skiesfrom West Virginia, planet Earth.Also known asM42,the Orion Nebula's glowing gas surroundshot, young stars.About 40 light-years across, it lies at the edge of an immense interstellarmolecular cloudonly 1,500 light-years awaywithin the same spiral arm of our Milky Way galaxy as the Sun.Along with dusty bluish reflection nebulaNGC 1977 and friendsnear the top of the frame,the eye-catching nebulae represent only asmall fraction of ourgalactic neighborhood'swealth of star-forming material.Within the well-studied stellar nursery,astronomers have also identifiedwhat appear to be numerousinfant solar systems.

2022年10月26日:大视野影像里的茧状星云-（Cocoon Nebula Wide Field） 2022年10月26日:大视野影像里的茧状星云-（Cocoon Nebula Wide Field）--原图下载{mtitle title="大视野影像里的茧状星云"/}Image Credit & Copyright: Andy Ermolli说明: 星云什么时候会看起来像彗星？在这幅宽超过2度的天鹅座拥挤星场里，最吸睛的是茧状星云。这个宇宙级的茧，其实是个緻密的恒星形成区，它除了为左侧的明亮发射与反射星云划上句点之外，右侧更有颀长的星际尘埃云相随，也因此，整个複合体的外观有些像彗星。编录号为IC 5146的这个複合星云，其明亮“头部”的跨幅约有10光年，黝黑的尘埃尾则绵延了将近100光年，而两者皆离我们约2,500光年远。明亮星云中心附的那颗亮星，年龄可能只有数十万年，它除了供能驱动星云发出辉光之外，也在分子云的造星尘埃及气体内清出了一个的空穴。在这幅可见光影像里，颀长黝黑的丝缕状尘埃，遮掩了在红外光波段已可见到的形成中恒星。{lamp/}原文：{mtitle title="Cocoon Nebula Wide Field"/}Image Credit & Copyright: Andy ErmolliExplanation: When does a nebula look like a comet? In this crowdedstarfield, covering over two degrees within the high flyingconstellation of the Swan (Cygnus),the eye is drawn to the Cocoon Nebula.A compact star forming region,the cosmic Cocoonpunctuates a nebula bright in emission and reflection on the left,with a long trail of interstellar dust clouds to the right, makingthe entire complex appear a bit like a comet.Cataloged as IC 5146, the central bright head of the nebula spans about 10 light years,while the dark dusty tail spans nearly 100 light years. Both are located about 2,500 light years away.The bright star near the bright nebula's center, likely only a few hundred thousand years old, supplies power to the nebular glow as it helpsclear outa cavity in the molecular cloud's star forming dust and gas.The long dusty filaments of the tail, although dark in this visible light image, are themselves hiding stars in the process of formation, stars that can be seen at infrared wavelengths.

2022年08月27日:IC 5146：茧状星云-（IC 5146: The Cocoon Nebula） 2022年08月27日:IC 5146：茧状星云-（IC 5146: The Cocoon Nebula）--原图下载{mtitle title="IC 5146：茧状星云"/}Image Credit &Copyright: David Jenkins说明: 茧状星云之内有个正在形成中的星团。编录号为IC 5146的茧状星云，座落在北半球夏季天空的天鹅座方向约4,000光年远之处，其直径将近有15光年。如同其他的恒星形成区一样，这个位在一团不可见分子云边缘的星云，其内的氢气因受到炽热年轻恒星激发而发出泛红的辉光，而部分尘埃则因反射星光而渲染成蓝色。 事实上，位在星云中心附近、年龄可能只有几百万年的亮星，除了激发星云发光之外，也在可以形成恒星的分子云尘埃和气体里，慢慢清出了一个空穴。这幅摄于加拿大．安大略省．艾尔镇、总曝光长度为29小时的小望远镜极深空彩色影像，清楚呈现了这个满是尘埃的恒星形成区之内及周围的迷人特徵结构。{lamp/}原文：{mtitle title="IC 5146: The Cocoon Nebula"/}Image Credit &Copyright: David JenkinsExplanation: Inside the Cocoon Nebula is a newly developing cluster of stars.Cataloged asIC 5146, the beautifulnebula is nearly 15light-years wide.Soaring high innorthern summer night skies,it's located some 4,000 light years away toward the constellation Cygnusthe Swan.Like other star forming regions, it stands outin red, glowing, hydrogen gasexcited by young, hot stars,and dust-reflected starlightat the edge of an otherwise invisiblemolecular cloud. In fact, the bright star found near the center of this nebula is likelyonly a few hundred thousand years old, powering the nebular glow as itclears outa cavity in the molecularcloud's star forming dust and gas.A 29 hour long integration with a small telescope from Ayr, Ontario,Canada resulted in thisexceptionally deep color viewtracing tantalizing features within and surrounding the dustystellarnursery.