Astronomers using the VLT survey telescope at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile 283 million pixel image of the Dark Wolf Nebula.
This image was taken by ESO’s VLT survey telescope and shows the Dark Wolf Nebula. Image credit: ESO / VPHAS+ Team.
The Dark Wolf Nebula is located approximately 5,300 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius.
“Dark nebulae are cold clouds of cosmic dust so dense that they obscure the light of stars and other celestial bodies behind them,” ESO astronomers said in a statement.
“As its name suggests, it does not emit visible light, unlike other nebulae.”
“The dust grains within it absorb visible light and only allow longer wavelength radiation, such as infrared radiation, to pass through.”
“Astronomers study these frozen dust clouds because they often contain new stars that are being born.”
New images of the Dark Wolf Nebula VLT surveying telescope (VST) Chile’s Atacama Desert.
“This image occupies an area of the sky equivalent to four full moons, but it is actually part of a much larger nebula called . gum 55” said the astronomers.
“If you look closely, the wolf may even be a werewolf, and its hands are trying to grab unsuspecting bystanders.”
“Of course, tracking the ghostly presence of a wolf in the sky is only possible because of its contrast with the bright background.”
“This image shows in stunning detail how the dark wolf stands out among the glowing clouds that form the stars behind it.”
“The colorful clouds are composed primarily of hydrogen gas, which glows with a reddish hue when excited by intense ultraviolet light from newborn stars.”
This image was taken as part of the VST Photometric Hα Survey of the Southern Galactic Plane and Bulge (VPHAS+), which is studying about 500 million objects in the Milky Way.
“Studies like this help scientists better understand the life cycles of stars in our home galaxy,” the researchers said.
Source: www.sci.news
