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 October 18
        [2]Brown glowing dust appears to the left of the blue and red
    filamentary gas that composes the western edge of the Veil Nebula, a
       supernova remnant. Please see the explanation for more detailed
                                information.

                      Dust and the Western Veil Nebula
                    Image Credit & Copyright: [3]Jiang Wu

   Explanation: It's so big it is easy to miss. The [4]entire Veil Nebula
   spans six times the diameter of the [5]full moon, but is so dim you
   need [6]binoculars to see it. The nebula was created about [7]15,000
   years ago when a star in the [8]constellation of the Swan ([9]Cygnus)
   exploded. The [10]spectacular explosion would have [11]appeared
   brighter than even [12]Venus for a week - but there is [13]no known
   record of it. Pictured is the western edge of the still-expanding gas
   cloud. Notable gas filaments include the [14]Witch's Broom Nebula on
   the upper left near the bright foreground star [15]52 Cygni, and
   [16]Fleming's Triangular Wisp (formerly known as [17]Pickering's
   Triangle) running diagonally up the image middle. What is rarely imaged
   -- but seen in the featured long exposure across many color bands -- is
   the reflecting brown [18]dust that runs vertically up the image left,
   dust likely created in the cool atmospheres of massive [19]stars.

                       Tomorrow's picture: open space
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    Authors & editors: [31]Robert Nemiroff ([32]MTU) & [33]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([34]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Phillip Newman [35]Specific rights apply.
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                A service of: [37]ASD at [38]NASA / [39]GSFC,
                         [40]NASA Science Activation
                           & [41]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2310/WesternVeil_Wu_2974.jpg
   3. mailto: wujiang0910 at gmail dot com
   4. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap191031.html
   5. https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5048
   6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binoculars#/media/File:Binocularp.svg
   7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_prehistory
   8. https://www.iau.org/public/themes/constellations/
   9. https://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/constellations/cygnus.html
  10. https://youtu.be/7zCPgdcdB5Q
  11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap211114.html
  12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230915.html
  13. https://i.pinimg.com/originals/d1/1a/62/d11a627b5fe41146b7afa313548c2119.jpg
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap180408.html
  15. http://stars.astro.illinois.edu/sow/52cyg.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210727.html
  17. https://www.davidcortner.com/slowblog/20161113.php
  18. https://herscheltelescope.org.uk/science/infrared/dust/
  19. https://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/how-do-stars-form-and-evolve/
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231017.html
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  24. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss
  27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  29. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=231018
  30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap231019.html
  31. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  32. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  33. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  34. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  35. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  36. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  37. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  38. https://www.nasa.gov/
  39. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  40. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  41. http://www.mtu.edu/