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The Omega Nebula
This cloud of gas and dust has a feature unusual to most
emission nebulae: the stars that light it up—a cluster
numbering 35--are hidden to the eye, buried deep inside
clouds of dust. The Omega’s red color comes from hydrogen
gas energized by the radiation from the young stars nested
inside. The Omega is located somewhere between 5000 and
6000 light years from us, its bright, visible component,
which is about 15 light years across, is embedded in a
larger cloud of dark material extending perhaps 40 light
years or more. |
