Orion Nebula. Mosaic of images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope showing the Orion Nebula. The colours approximate to natural tones. This view, abou

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Orion Nebula. Mosaic of images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope showing the Orion Nebula. The colours approximate to natural tones. This view, about light years across, shows most of the visible light parts of the nebula. Just left of centre are four massive, young stars known as the Trapezium. Ultraviolet radiation from these hot stars ionises the gas of the nebula, causing it to glow. Stellar winds add to the pressure of this radiation to 'blow' dust and gas away from the centre, forming large 'shock waves' such as the Great Wall (lower left). This is a mosaic of 45 exposures made during January 1994 to March 1995.

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Size: 4488px × 4389px
Photo credit: © NASA/ESA/STSCI/C.O'DELL & S.WONG, RICE U./SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: astronomy, birth, cosmology, evolution, formation, great, hst, image, m42, nebula, orion, post-repair, science, star, starbirth, stellar, trapezium, wall