                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

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

                               2023 January 12

                             Stardust in Perseus
                    Image Credit & Copyright: Jack Groves

   Explanation: This cosmic expanse of dust, gas, and stars covers some 6
   degrees on the sky in the heroic constellation Perseus. At upper left
   in the gorgeous skyscape is the intriguing young star cluster IC 348
   and neighboring Flying Ghost Nebula with clouds of obscuring
   interstellar dust cataloged as Barnard 3 and 4. At right, another
   active star forming region NGC 1333 is connected by dark and dusty
   tendrils on the outskirts of the giant Perseus Molecular Cloud, about
   850 light-years away. Other dusty nebulae are scattered around the
   field of view, along with the faint reddish glow of hydrogen gas. In
   fact, the cosmic dust tends to hide the newly formed stars and young
   stellar objects or protostars from prying optical telescopes.
   Collapsing due to self-gravity, the protostars form from the dense
   cores embedded in the molecular cloud. At the molecular cloud's
   estimated distance, this field of view would span over 90 light-years.

                     Tomorrow's picture: pixels in space
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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