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.

                                2026 April 26
      [2]The featured image shows a large pillar of dust and gas in the
    Carina Nebula. The pillar has many humps and several jets. Please see
               the explanation for more detailed information.

                   Mystic Mountain Monster being Destroyed
     Image Credit: [3]Hubble, [4]NASA, [5]ESA; Processing & [6]License:
                               [7]Judy Schmidt

   Explanation: Inside the head of this interstellar monster is a star
   that is slowly destroying it. The huge monster, actually an
   [8]inanimate series of pillars of gas and dust, measures [9]light years
   in length. The in-head star is not itself visible through the
   [10]opaque [11]interstellar dust but is bursting out partly by ejecting
   opposing beams of energetic particles called [12]Herbig-Haro jets.
   Located about 7,500 light years away in the [13]Carina Nebula and known
   informally as Mystic Mountain, the appearance of these pillars is
   dominated by dark dust even though they are composed mostly of clear
   [14]hydrogen gas. The [15]featured image was taken with the [16]Hubble
   Space Telescope. All over these pillars, the [17]energetic light and
   [18]winds from massive newly formed stars are evaporating and
   dispersing the dusty stellar nurseries in which they formed. Within a
   few million years, the head of this giant, as well as most of its body,
   will have been [19]completely evaporated by internal and surrounding
   stars.

                       Tomorrow's picture: lost comet
     __________________________________________________________________

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     __________________________________________________________________

    Authors & editors: [31]Robert Nemiroff ([32]MTU) & [33]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([34]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [35]Specific rights apply.
            [36]NASA Web Privacy, [37]Accessibility, [38]Notices;
                A service of: [39]ASD at [40]NASA / [41]GSFC,
                         [42]NASA Science Activation
                           & [43]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2604/MysticPillar_HubbleSchmidt_1433.jpg
   3. https://hla.stsci.edu/
   4. https://www.nasa.gov/
   5. https://www.esa.int/
   6. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
   7. https://geckzilla.com/
   8. https://media.istockphoto.com/id/1128004359/photo/close-up-scottish-fold-cat-head-with-shocking-face-and-wide-open-eyes-frighten-or-surprised.jpg
   9. https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/light-year/
  10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230129.html
  11. http://espg.sr.unh.edu/ism/what1.html#dust
  12. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbig–Haro_object
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap190623.html
  14. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen
  15. https://www.flickr.com/photos/geckzilla/49452041152/in/faves-53460575@N03/
  16. https://science.nasa.gov/mission/hubble/overview/about-hubble/
  17. https://science.nasa.gov/ems/10_ultravioletwaves
  18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200121.html
  19. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvrAFFVVE9E
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260425.html
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  24. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  26. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  29. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=260426
  30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260427.html
  31. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  32. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  33. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  34. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  35. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  36. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  37. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  38. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  39. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  40. https://www.nasa.gov/
  41. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  42. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  43. http://www.mtu.edu/