This image from the Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) 4-meter telescope shows a roughly one-half-degree-square region of the sky in the constellation Orion (about the same size as the diameter of the full Moon). This is a small part of the the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex, a giant region of gas and dust undergoing active star formation some 1,500 light-years (460 parsecs) away.
Numerous small knots known as Herbig-Haro (HH) objects, labeled in white on the illustration, are signatures of recently formed stars ejecting material into space. The three HH objects labeled in green have been the subjects of intense study by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope over several years, resulting in a better understanding of how the material ejected from stars interacts with the surrounding medium. A few of the brighter stars in the image are labeled in yellow.
The color image is a composite of data taken through filters sampling light emitted by sulfur (red), hydrogen (green), and oxygen (blue). Full-resolution images and additional information are available at:
http://www.noao.edu/image_gallery/html/im1086.html.
Credits
Z. Levay (STScI), T.A. Rector (University of Alaska, Anchorage), and H. Schweiker (NOAO/AURA/NSF)| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | Orion Complex |
| R.A. Position | 05h 35m 49.29s |
| Dec. Position | -6° 32' 3.84" |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
