Chamaeleon Dark Nebulas

Discover the universe! Each day a different image or photograph of our universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by an astronomer.

January 17
The featured image shows a dark nebula complex.
thick dust.
Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

The Chamaeleon Dark Nebulas are dark.
Telescope Live, Heaven's Mirror Observatory is a work of art.

The dark dust of space can have an elegant look. The far-south constellation of Chamaeleon is such a case. Dark dust blocks visible light from stars and galaxies behind it. In this exposure, the dust is seen mostly in light, with its red and near-IR colors giving it a brown hue. The bright star Beta Chamaeleontis is visible just to the right of the center, with the dust that surrounds it reflecting blue light from its primarily blue-white color. There are stars and dust in our own Milky Way, but the white spot just below Beta Chamaeleontis is the galaxy IC 3104 which is far away. Interstellar dust is created in the cool atmospheres of giant stars and then dispersed into space by stellar winds and exploding stars.

The picture is of icons over Australia.

Robert Nemiroff is an author and Jerry Bonnell is an editor.
Phillip Newman has specific rights.
NASA has a privacy policy on the internet.
There is a service at NASA.
& Michigan Tech. U.

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Discover the universe! Each day a different image or photograph of our universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by an astronomer.

January 18
The featured image shows a southern skyscape.
There is a constellation on the left of the Southern Cross.
On the right. The panorama was acquired from the Bombo Headland quarry in Australia.
You can see the explanation for more detailed information.

From the beginning to the end.
Lucy Hu's image is copyrighted.

The sky is filled with glowing icons. On the far left is the familiar constellation of Orion, divided by its three-aligned belt stars and featuring the famous Orion Nebula. The star in the night sky is the bright one: Sirius. The central band of the Milky Way is visible in the center of the image. The Large Magellanic Cloud and the Small Magellanic Cloud are two of the best satellites of the Milky Way. There is a constellation of four stars that make up the Southern Cross on the far right. The image is a combination of 18 exposures taken by the same camera and location in eastern Australia during the last days of last year. In the background, the basalt columns of the Bombo Quarry show the Pacific Ocean.

Tomorrow's picture: a big galaxy.

Robert Nemiroff is an author and Jerry Bonnell is an editor.
Phillip Newman has specific rights.
NASA has a privacy policy on the internet.
There is a service at NASA.
& Michigan Tech. U.