﻿ Astronomy Picture of the Day [1]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 December 26 [2]A complex nebula is shown in front of a dense starfield. The nebula appears orange. A bright star is seen just to the right of the nebula. Please see the explanation for more detailed information. IC 443: The Jellyfish Nebula Image Credit & Copyright: [3]David Payne Explanation: Why is this jellyfish swimming in a sea of stars? Drifting near bright star [4]Eta Geminorum, seen at the right, the [5]Jellyfish Nebula extends its tentacles from the bright arcing ridge of emission left of center. In fact, the cosmic [6]jellyfish is part of bubble-shaped [7]supernova remnant IC 443, the expanding debris cloud from a [8]massive star that exploded. Light from the explosion first reached [9]planet Earth over [10]30,000 years ago. Like its cousin in astronomical waters, the [11]Crab Nebula supernova remnant IC 443 is [12]known to harbor a [13]neutron star -- the remnant of the collapsed stellar core. The Jellyfish Nebula is about 5,000 [14]light-years away. At that distance, the [15]featured image would [16]span about 140 light-years across. Your Sky Surprise: [17]What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (post 1995) Tomorrow's picture: rainbow aurora __________________________________________________________________ [18]< | [19]Archive | [20]Submissions | [21]Index | [22]Search | [23]Calendar | [24]RSS | [25]Education | [26]About APOD | [27]Discuss | [28]> __________________________________________________________________ Authors & editors: [29]Robert Nemiroff ([30]MTU) & [31]Jerry Bonnell ([32]UMCP) NASA Official: Phillip Newman [33]Specific rights apply. [34]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices A service of: [35]ASD at [36]NASA / [37]GSFC, [38]NASA Science Activation & [39]Michigan Tech. U. References 1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2312/Jellyfish_Payne_7846.jpg 3. https://www.astrobin.com/users/Gunshy61/ 4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eta_Geminorum 5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IC_443 6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jellyfish 7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernova_remnant 8. https://youtu.be/Q5UEMkvdnAc 9. https://science.nasa.gov/earth/facts/ 10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upper_Paleolithic 11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231115.html 12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap060602.html 13. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutron_star 14. https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/light-year/en/ 15. https://www.astrobin.com/cgp7eo/B/ 16. https://i.pinimg.com/736x/9f/f7/24/9ff7249d652f407a5af1b6ac9827c917.jpg 17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231225.html 19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html 21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html 22. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search 23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 24. https://apod.com/feed.rss 25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html 26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html 27. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=231226 28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231227.html 29. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html 30. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/ 31. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html 32. http://www.astro.umd.edu/ 33. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 34. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html 35. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 36. https://www.nasa.gov/ 37. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/ 38. https://science.nasa.gov/learners 39. http://www.mtu.edu/