by Ann » Thu Mar 18, 2021 10:21 am
Stardust in the Perseus Molecular Cloud.
Image Credit & Copyright: Kerry-Ann Lecky Hepburn, Stuart Heggie
That's a really fine APOD! I very much appreciate how the background stars are completely hidden behind dust in many places, where in other parts the background stars are clearly seen.
The NGC 1333 region in Perseus reminds me of the NGC 6726/NGC 6727 region in Corona Australis. Both NGC 1333 and NGC 6726/NGC 6727 are active regions of low-mass star formation. In both cases, the most massive stars that have formed are stars of spectral class A or late B. These A- and B-type stars are typically immersed in reflection nebulas, remnants of their birth cocoons. The blue stars are therefore very young. They are also reddened and relatively faint for their spectral class.
Meanwhile, star formation is still going on, but the stars that are forming now are typically much more light-weight than the bright blue stars. We can see faint orange light from small stars punching through the darkness of their birth cocoons, and there are tiny red emission nebulas from other stages of star formation. Jets, loops and shocked gas can be seen where the dust is thickest and where stars are still being formed.
We can observe tiny birth cries from small stars being born.
Ann
[float=left][attachment=0]KerryLeckyHepburn_NGC1333_LRGB_SH_KLH1024[1].jpg[/attachment][c][size=80][color=#0040FF]Stardust in the Perseus Molecular Cloud.
Image Credit & Copyright: Kerry-Ann Lecky Hepburn, Stuart Heggie[/color][/size][/c][/float][float=right][img3="NGC 6726, NGC 6727 and IC 4812 in Corona Australis. Image Credit & Copyright: CHART32 Team, Processing - Johannes Schedler."]https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/1501/NGC6726_c23schedler.jpg[/img3][/float]
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That's a really fine APOD! I very much appreciate how the background stars are completely hidden behind dust in many places, where in other parts the background stars are clearly seen.
The NGC 1333 region in Perseus reminds me of the NGC 6726/NGC 6727 region in Corona Australis. Both NGC 1333 and NGC 6726/NGC 6727 are active regions of low-mass star formation. In both cases, the most massive stars that have formed are stars of spectral class A or late B. These A- and B-type stars are typically immersed in reflection nebulas, remnants of their birth cocoons. The blue stars are therefore very young. They are also reddened and relatively faint for their spectral class.
Meanwhile, star formation is still going on, but the stars that are forming now are typically much more light-weight than the bright blue stars. We can see faint orange light from small stars punching through the darkness of their birth cocoons, and there are tiny red emission nebulas from other stages of star formation. Jets, loops and shocked gas can be seen where the dust is thickest and where stars are still being formed.
We can observe tiny birth cries from small stars being born.
Ann