蝘蜓座II暗星云

Chamaeleon II Dark Cloud
Image Credit & Copyright: Don Goldman

Explanation: A small constellation hiding near the south celestial pole, The Chamaeleon boasts no bright stars. Stars are forming within its constellation boundaries though, in a complex of dark, dusty molecular clouds. Some 500 light-years distant, the Chamaeleon II dark nebula inhabits this view where the cosmic dust clouds standout mostly in silhouette against the starry southern sky. The telescopic frame is about the angular size of a Full Moon and so spans about 5 light-years at the dark cloud’s estimated distance. Scattered near center a telltale reddish glow from identified Herbig-Haro objects is seen in the sharp image, jets of shocked glowing gas emanating from recently formed stars.

蝘蜓座II暗星云
影像提供与版权: Don Goldman

说明: 蝘蜓座是南天极附近，一个里头没有亮星的小星座。不过，这个星座里的黝黑尘埃分子云复合体，仍不停的在形成恒星。在这幅影像里，距离约500光年远的蝘蜓座II暗分子云，之所以会以剪影之姿现踪，是因为有南天的繁星为衬托。这幅张角与满月相当的望远镜影像，依这团暗星云的估计距离来换算，大约涵盖了5光年的区域。在这幅清晰影像中心附近，带着特征泛红辉光的物体，是因刚诞生恒星发出的喷流，冲撞激震周围的云气发光而形成的赫比格-哈罗天体。