Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                2023 March 29
    [2]A star field is shown with ragged red clouds on the far left and a
    thin blue cloud with the outline similar to the head of a dolphin to
    the right. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

                    Sh2-308: A Dolphin Shaped Star Bubble
          Image Credit & Copyright: [3]Aleix Roig ([4]AstroCatInfo)

   Explanation: Which star created this bubble? It [5]wasn't the bright
   star on the bubble's right. And it also wasn't a giant space
   [6]dolphin. It was the star in the blue nebula's center, a famously
   energetic [7]Wolf-Rayet star. [8]Wolf-Rayet stars in general have over
   20 times the mass of [9]our Sun and expel fast [10]particle winds that
   can create [11]iconic [12]looking [13]nebulas. In this case, the
   resulting star bubble spans over 60 light years, is about 70,000 years
   old, and happens to look like the head of a dolphin. Named [14]Sh2-308
   and dubbed the [15]Dolphin-Head Nebula, the gas ball lies about 5,000
   [16]light years away and covers as much sky as the [17]full moon --
   although it is much dimmer. The nearby red-tinged clouds on the left of
   the [18]featured [19]image may owe their glow and shape to energetic
   light emitted from the same [20]Wolf-Rayet star.

                    Tomorrow's picture: celestial thingy
     __________________________________________________________________

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    Authors & editors: [32]Robert Nemiroff ([33]MTU) & [34]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([35]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Phillip Newman [36]Specific rights apply.
              [37]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                A service of: [38]ASD at [39]NASA / [40]GSFC,
                         [41]NASA Science Activation
                           & [42]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2303/DolphinReef_Roig_5688.jpg
   3. https://astrocat.info/about/
   4. https://www.instagram.com/astrocatinfo/
   5. https://miro.medium.com/v2/resize:fit:2400/1*Bp1dNLfyDjH2QCgALi-BrQ.jpeg
   6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolphin#/media/File:Dolphin_Encounter-9563.jpg
   7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf–Rayet_star
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230318.html
   9. https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/solar-system/sun/by-the-numbers/
  10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap000318.html
  11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230208.html
  12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap221220.html
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210617.html
  14. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sh2-308
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap211021.html
  16. https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/light-year/
  17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200322.html
  18. https://astrocat.info/sharpless-308-the-dolphin-nebula/
  19. https://www.instagram.com/p/Cob4zhMsoxh/
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap200308.html
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230328.html
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  25. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  30. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=230329
  31. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230330.html
  32. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  33. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  34. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  35. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  36. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  37. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  38. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  39. https://www.nasa.gov/
  40. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  41. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  42. http://www.mtu.edu/