Astronomy Picture for Today

nasa ^ | 01/24/2006 | DG

[HOTTIEBOY]

The Colorful Horsehead Nebula
Credit & Copyright: Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, J.-C. Cuillandre (CFHT), Coelum

Explanation: While drifting through the cosmos, a magnificent interstellar dust cloud became sculpted by stellar winds and radiation to assume a recognizable shape. Fittingly named the Horsehead Nebula, it is embedded in the vast and complex Orion Nebula. The dark molecular cloud, roughly 1,500 light years distant, is cataloged as Barnard 33 and is visible only because its obscuring dust is silhouetted against the bright emission nebula IC 434. The bright blue reflection nebula NGC 2023 is visible on the lower left. The prominent horse head portion of the nebula is really just part of a larger cloud of dust which can be seen extending toward the bottom of the picture. A potentially rewarding but difficult object to view with a small telescope, this gorgeous representative-color image was taken by the large 3.6-m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope in Hawaii, USA.

[HOTTIEBOY]

We had some discussion of this yesterday, so I thought I would post this today. Considered one of the most beautiful images taken, it is hard to imagine scale of this nebula. All the bright stars are foreground stars. It would take 30 years traveling at the speed of light to go across this image. Truly mind boggling.

Also, I have another image to share with you. It is a new image of my daughter in my profile.

[ToddBush]

Naaaaaaay

[ToddBush]

By the way, good pic of your daughter. Don't let her date till she's 30.

[Mr. K]

can this be seen with the naked eye from a relatively good telescope?

or do you need time-lapse to gather enough light?

[HOTTIEBOY]

Did you get the other pics?

[ToddBush]

LOVED them...

The Girlfriend walked into the computer room as I was looking at them and her response was classic:

"Hey, did you get Bosch's-- WOW, those are some big bazoombas!!"

[HOTTIEBOY]

No, not enough light. It is part of the orion nebula which can be seen any night during the winter with common binoculars. I looked at orion through binoculars last night. Looks like a fuzzy green cotton ball.

[End Times Sentinel]

Okay, not to come off sounding like a total retard, but I'm having a hard time reconciling what I'm reading with what I'm seeing. "Picture" isn't photograph taken from a telescope, right?  It's an artist's rendering as informed by a radio telescope, correct?

Also, that's one fine looking daughter.  You, sir, will be in my prayers.

Owl_Eagle

(If what I just wrote makes you sad or angry,

 it was probably sarcasm)

[HOTTIEBOY]

I think one of those my girl, I can't remeber which one.....God love her.

[ToddBush]

So I'm going to relook at them now...

Wait, NO! Bad Todd!

[The_Victor]

Nice pic of your baby girl. You have my sympathy (in advance).

[HOTTIEBOY]

No, that is an actual picture taken from a telescope. A 3.6meter telescope, timelapsed for maybe three or four hours for svereal consecutive days. Computer software then enhances the image.

[Woman on Caroline Street]

Hey, did you catch that new show on History channel "Six Degrees of Francis Bacon" yet?

It's the same premise as the show Connections, where they make six connections from point A to point F.

Example, last night's show was thus:

Connect in six degrees, Wooly Mammoths to the repair of the Hubble Space telescope.

Wooly Mammoths prompted early man to create harpoons. Harpoons helped build the whaling industry
The decline of Whale Oil prompted a new lighting method.
The invention of the light bulb caused the burgeoning of the vacuum tube industry.
The vacuum tube industry led to development of pressurized suits to work in vacuum chambers.
These suits allowed the space crew to work in space to attach the optics that would fix the Hubble Telescope.

Connections was still better. The host of this new show is a bit annoying, but it still beats network television.

[countorlock]

Beautiful! I suppose galaxies are not as pretty but I still like them better since they are so much bigger and farther away.

And all created 6000 years ago.

[HOTTIEBOY]

I will make sure all "dates" for my Erica are absolutely clear to the fact that my house believes in the 2nd amendment and we practice the 2nd amendment.

[Rummyfan]

It would take 30 years traveling at the speed of light to go across this image. Truly mind boggling.

Kinda puts things in perspective doesn't it?

[HOTTIEBOY]

Hey that is the same thing Micheal Moore did with George Bush and bin Ladin in Farenheit 9/11.

[Woman on Caroline Street]

So, uh, can we have your liver then?

(Please don't tell me you don't get this. And no, I haven't had any today!)

[HOTTIEBOY]

""""And all created 6000 years ago."""""


I will just leave it alone this time.

BTY, I like galaxies better too.

[HOTTIEBOY]

monte python??