2025年2月13日
Reflections on VdB 31
Image Credit & Copyright: Roberto Marinoni
Explanation: Riding high in the constellation of Auriga, beautiful, blue VdB 31 is the 31st object in Sidney van den Bergh’s 1966 catalog of reflection nebulae. It shares this well-composed celestial still life with dark, obscuring clouds B26, B27, and B28, recorded in Edward E. Barnard’s 1919 catalog of dark markings in the sky. All are these nebulae are interstellar dust clouds. Barnard’s dark nebulae block the light from background stars. For VdB 31 the dust preferentially reflects bluish starlight from embedded, hot, variable star AB Aurigae. Exploring the environs of AB Aurigae with the Hubble Space Telescope has revealed the several million year young star is itself surrounded by a flattened dusty disk with evidence for the ongoing formation of a planetary system. AB Aurigae is about 470 light-years away. At that distance this cosmic canvas would span about eight light-years.
Tomorrow’s picture: when roses are red
反射星云vdB 31
影像提供与版权: Roberto Marinoni
说明: 御夫座里的美丽泛蓝星云vdB 31，是Sidney van den Bergh（范登伯 vdB）在1966编录的反射星云表中，编号第31的天体。于这幅构图精美的天体静物画里，它有巴纳德在1919年所收录的天空暗星云表里的B26、B27和B28等黝黑星云为伴。上述的这些星际尘埃云，主要的差别在于巴纳德编录的暗星云会遮掩背景恒星的星光，而星云vdB 31的尘埃，则会高效率的反射来自炽热变星御夫座AB星的蓝色星光。使用哈勃太空望远镜探索御夫AB星的环境时，发现了这颗数百万年稚龄的年轻恒星，有扁平的尘埃盘环拱，显示其周围有正在形成中的行星系统。御夫座AB星距离约为470光年，以此距离来推算，这片视野的宽度约为8光年。
明日的图片: when roses are red
