Emission nebula NGC 7000, optical image. This nebula is known as the North America nebula because its shape is similar to that of the continent. By th

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Emission nebula NGC 7000, optical image. This nebula is known as the North America nebula because its shape is similar to that of the continent. By this analogy, this view is a close- up of the Gulf of Mexico. The nebula is a diffuse cloud of dust and gas, lying about 1600 light years from the Earth in the constellation Cygnus. The hydrogen gas is ionised by radiation from the hot young stars within the nebula, and glows red. Between the nebula and the Earth is a dense cloud of dust which obscures some of the light, and is responsible for the defined shape we see.

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Size: 4873px × 5030px
Photo credit: © CANADA-FRANCE-HAWAII TELESCOPE/JEAN-CHARLES CUILLANDRE/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: 7000, america, astronomical, astronomy, astrophysical, astrophysics, birth, canada, cfht, cluster, cygnus, dust, emission, evolution, formation, france, gas, hawaii, hii, ionised, nebula, ngc, north, open, region, space, star, stellar, telescope