NASA & ESA - Hubble Space Telescope (HST) patch.
Nov 12, 2021
Image Credits: NASA, ESA, and K. Stapelfeldt (Jet Propulsion Laboratory); Processing; Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America).
This NASA Hubble Space Telescope image captures a portion of the reflection nebula IC 2631 that contains a protostar, the hot, dense core of a forming star that is accumulating gas and dust. Eventually the protostar may gravitationally gather enough matter to begin nuclear fusion and emit its own energy and starlight.
Reflection nebulae are clouds of gas and dust that reflect the light from nearby stars. The starlight scatters through the gas and dust like a flashlight beam shining on mist in the dark and illuminates it. Because of the way light scatters when it hits the fine dust of the interstellar medium, these nebulae are often bluish in color.
Image above: Hubble observed a small part of IC2631 in a survey looking at the disks of newly-formed stars. Image Credits: NASA, ESA, K. Stapelfeldt (Jet Propulsion Laboratory), and ESO; Processing; Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America).
Hubble observed this nebula while looking for disks of gas and dust around young stars. Such disks are left over from the formation of the star and may eventually form planets.
Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Animation Credit: NASA
Related articles:
Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys Instrument Resumes Science, Investigation Continues (Update)
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/11/hubbles-advanced-camera-for-surveys.html
NASA Takes Additional Steps to Investigate Hubble Instruments in Safe Mode
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/11/nasa-takes-additional-steps-to.html
Hubble Remains in Safe Mode, NASA Team Investigating
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2021/11/hubble-remains-in-safe-mode-nasa-team.html
Related link:
Hubble Space Telescope (HST): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/index.html
Images (mentioned), Animation (mentioned), Text, Credits: NASA/Andrea Gianopoulos/GSFC/Claire Andreoli.
Best regards, Orbiter.ch
