APOD: 2019 April 12 - A Cosmic Rose: The Rosette Nebula in Monoceros
A Cosmic Rose: The Rosette Nebula in Monoceros
Image Credit & Copyright: Jean DeanExplanation: The Rosette Nebula, NGC 2237, is not the only cosmic cloud of gas and dust to
evoke the
imagery of
flowers, but it is the most famous. At the edge of a large
molecular cloud in Monoceros some 5,000 light years away, the petals of this cosmic rose are actually a stellar nursery. The lovely, symmetric shape is
sculpted by the winds and
radiation from its central cluster of
hot young, O-type stars. Stars in the
energetic cluster, cataloged
as NGC 2244, are only a few million years young, while the central cavity in the Rosette Nebula, is about 50
light-years in diameter. The nebula can be seen with a small telescope toward the constellation of
Monoceros, the Unicorn. This natural appearing telescopic portrait of the Rosette Nebula was made using broadband and narrowband filters, because sometimes
roses aren't red.
Tomorrow's picture: bright star, dark nebula
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