![]() ![]() It is similar to a dark nebula but they are less dense than dark nebula which allows the reflected light to scatter. Dark nebulae are nebulae that do not emit light and appear as a dark spot or cloud in the sky.Ī reflection nebula, just like NGC 1999, is a nebula that reflects light from nearby stars. Some nebulae emit light because of the surrounding gas getting ionized. There are different types of nebulae such as Emission nebulae, reflection nebulae, dark nebulae, planetary nebulae and supernova remnants. The gas and dust in the cloud start to collapse into each other gaining mass and density until it forms a star (which takes millions of years). Stanke et al./Digitized Sky Survey 2Ī nebula is a cloud of dust and gas in outer space. The image shows the region around the reflection nebula NGC 1999 in visible light, with the APEX observations overlaid in brilliant orange tones that seem to set the dark clouds on fire.Ĭredit: ESO/APEX (MPIfR/ESO/OSO)/T. While these dense interstellar clouds seem dark and obscured in visible-light observations, APEX’s LABOCA camera can detect the heat glow of the dust and reveal the hiding places where new stars are being formed. ![]() You’ll have no trouble identifying it because of the lack of background stars over a 5′-wide region.A new image from the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) telescope in Chile shows a beautiful view of clouds of cosmic dust in the region of Orion. NGC 1788’s south end meets dark nebula LDN 1616. The western one surrounds a 10th-magnitude star while the eastern lobe has a small, bright concentration of light at its center. The bright nebula has a diffuse border and features two lobes. Through a 10-inch telescope, you’ll have no trouble spotting NGC 1788. This object sits 2° north of magnitude 2.7 Beta (β) Eridani. This week’s large-telescope target is reflection nebula NGC 1788 in Orion. The bright star on NGC 1664’s southwestern edge is magnitude 7.7. The background star field in this area is rich, but you’ll have no trouble picking out the cluster. Through a 4-inch telescope at 100x, you’ll see three dozen stars. That gives it an area one-third as large as the Full Moon. It shines at magnitude 7.6 and measures 18′ across. You’ll find this attractive object 2° west of magnitude 3.0 Epsilon (ε) Aurigae. This week’s small-telescope target is open cluster NGC 1664 in Auriga. A nebula filter will help you see the nebulae better but will worsen the view of clusters. Pause to examine the many star clusters and nebulae that lie within this galactic neighbor. Through a 6-inch or larger telescope and a magnification around 200x, slowly scan back and forth across the Cloud’s face. To extend the Cloud’s boundary beyond this - to an astounding 11° by 9° - use binoculars or a rich-field telescope and pan back and forth. Outside the bar, the brightness drops rapidly, but you’ll still detect an oval haze measuring 6° by 4°. Note the galaxy’s brightest region, a luminous bar measuring roughly 5° by 1°. Under a dark sky, start observing the Large Magellanic Cloud without optical aid. It would shine with a magnitude of –2 and would measure 36° long. If we lived on a planet within the Cloud, the Milky Way would dominate the sky. ![]() The finest, the Tarantula Nebula (NGC 2070), is itself one of the sky’s top wonders. No less than 114 NGC objects lie within the Large Magellanic Cloud’s boundaries. What Magellan did was make them known to Europe thus, they bear his name. Both “clouds” had been visible to Southern Hemisphere dwellers throughout history. Historians often credit Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan (1480–1521) with the discovery of the Large Magellanic Cloud and its neighbor, the Small Magellanic Cloud. That means you have to be at a location south of north latitude 25° just to begin to see the Cloud. In fact, its northern edge lies only 25° from the South Celestial Pole. This satellite galaxy of our Milky Way shines with a magnitude of 0.4.Īstronomers classify the Large Magellanic Cloud as an irregular galaxy. Below the celestial equator lie the brightest stars, the center of our galaxy, the best dark nebulae, and the most brilliant celestial wonder - the Large Magellanic Cloud. Southern Hemisphere observers definitely enjoy the sky’s better half. This week’s naked-eye object is the Large Magellanic Cloud in Dorado. ![]()
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