It's so nice to see a lovely deep-sky RGB image by great astrophotographer Tony Hallas!
Note how the Lagoon Nebula and the NGC 6559 complex are clearly part of one and the same large starforming region. There is even a dark dust lane running from the "top" of the Lagoon Nebula all the way over to and "around" the NGC 6559 complex.
Next to active star formation regions at top left, the dark dust lane takes on a bluish hue. It becomes a mixture of an absorption nebula and a reflection nebula, reflecting the blue light of hot newborn stars.
This picture is a fine illustration of the fact that it takes dust to make gas clouds cool and condense enough to form stars. If you want to see star formation, follow the dust.
Speaking of reflection nebulae, very faint bluish reflection nebulae can be seen at the "top" and "bottom" of the Lagoon Nebula.
So the Lagoon Nebula and the NGC 6559 complex are linked. The Trifid Nebula and M21, the cluster of blue stars to the upper left of the Trifid, are likely also linked. But M21 has used up and then blown away all the gas and dust that it was born from. No red or blue nebulae can be seen here, and no sign of ongoing star formation.
But all the nebulae in the picture are busy producing and hatching new stars.
What a great picture this is!
Ann
It's so nice to see a lovely deep-sky RGB image by great astrophotographer Tony Hallas! :D :D :D
Note how the Lagoon Nebula and the NGC 6559 complex are clearly part of one and the same large starforming region. There is even a dark dust lane running from the "top" of the Lagoon Nebula all the way over to and "around" the NGC 6559 complex.
Next to active star formation regions at top left, the dark dust lane takes on a bluish hue. It becomes a mixture of an absorption nebula and a reflection nebula, reflecting the blue light of hot newborn stars.
This picture is a fine illustration of the fact that it takes dust to make gas clouds cool and condense enough to form stars. If you want to see star formation, follow the dust.
Speaking of reflection nebulae, very faint bluish reflection nebulae can be seen at the "top" and "bottom" of the Lagoon Nebula.
So the Lagoon Nebula and the NGC 6559 complex are linked. The Trifid Nebula and M21, the cluster of blue stars to the upper left of the Trifid, are likely also linked. But M21 has used up and then blown away all the gas and dust that it was born from. No red or blue nebulae can be seen here, and no sign of ongoing star formation.
But all the nebulae in the picture are busy producing and hatching new stars.
What a great picture this is! :D
Ann