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.

                               2024 August 19
    [2]A red emission nebula is shown against a busy starfield with many
    dark dust filaments near the nebula's center. Near the bottom of the
    image is a smaller blue reflection nebula. Please see the explanation
                       for more detailed information.

                         IC 5146: The Cocoon Nebula
              Image Credit & Copyright: [3]Luis Romero Ventura

   Explanation: Inside the Cocoon Nebula is a newly developing cluster of
   stars. Cataloged as [4]IC 5146, the beautiful nebula is nearly 15
   [5]light-years wide. Soaring high in [6]northern summer night skies,
   it's located some 4,000 light years away toward the constellation of
   the Swan ([7]Cygnus). Like other star forming regions, it stands out in
   red, glowing, [8]hydrogen gas excited by young, hot stars, and
   [9]dust-reflected starlight at the edge of an otherwise invisible
   [10]molecular cloud. In fact, the bright star found near the center of
   this nebula is likely only a few hundred thousand years old, powering
   the nebular glow as it [11]clears out a cavity in the [12]molecular
   cloud's star forming dust and gas. A 48-hour long integration resulted
   in this [13]exceptionally deep color view tracing [14]tantalizing
   features within and surrounding the dusty [15]stellar nursery.

                     Tomorrow's picture: high energy sky
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    Authors & editors: [27]Robert Nemiroff ([28]MTU) & [29]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([30]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [31]Specific rights apply.
            [32]NASA Web Privacy, [33]Accessibility, [34]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/2408/Cocoon_Ventura_2047.jpg
   3. https://www.flickr.com/photos/astrotolva/
   4. http://www.universetoday.com/2008/07/07/the-cosmic-cocoon-ic-5146-by-tom-v-davis/
   5. https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/light-year/
   6. https://science.nasa.gov/skywatching/
   7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cygnus_(constellation)
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap050930.html
   9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap061211.html
  10. http://loke.as.arizona.edu/~ckulesa/research/overview.html
  11. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014A&A...571A..93G/abstract
  12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230129.html
  13. https://www.flickr.com/photos/astrotolva/53899561718/
  14. https://media.istockphoto.com/id/832162420/photo/intrigued-cat-under-a-blanket.jpg?s=1024x1024&w=is&k=20&c=0GQ8NOKdnthUpRQxIhwt6ZZ-K-x6aRo8Y_lhNhijADQ=
  15. https://science.nasa.gov/universe/stars/
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240818.html
  17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  20. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  22. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  25. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=240819
  26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240820.html
  27. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  28. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  29. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  30. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  31. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  32. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  33. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  34. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  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/