Sifting through dust near Orion’s Belt (data coverage)

This image of the region surrounding the reflection nebula Messier 78, just to the north of Orion’s belt, shows clouds of cosmic dust threaded through the nebula like a string of pearls. The submillimetre-wavelength observations, made with the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) telescope and shown here in orange, use the heat glow of interstellar dust grains to show astronomers where new stars are being formed. They are overlaid on a view of the region in visible light. The APEX observations cover the areas within the red lines. Submillimetre-wavelength emission outside of these regions would not appear on this image.

Credit:

ESO/APEX (MPIfR/ESO/OSO)/T. Stanke et al./Igor Chekalin/Digitized Sky Survey 2

About the Image

Id:eso1219c
Type:Observation
Release date:2 May 2012, 12:00
Related releases:eso1219
Size:2287 x 3493 px

About the Object

Name:M 78, Messier 78, NGC 2068
Type:Milky Way : Nebula : Appearance : Reflection
Distance:1400 light years
Category:Nebulae

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Colours & filters

BandWavelengthTelescope
Infrared
Z
870 nmAtacama Pathfinder Experiment
LABOCA