Arts Universe and Philology

Arts Universe and Philology
The blog "Art, Universe, and Philology" is an online platform dedicated to the promotion and exploration of art, science, and philology. Its owner, Konstantinos Vakouftsis, shares his thoughts, analyses, and passion for culture, the universe, and literature with his readers.

Πέμπτη 7 Φεβρουαρίου 2013

Ο πανέμορφος Γλάρος του Διαστήματος. Wide-field view of the entire Seagull Nebula (IC 2177)


Το νεφέλωμα του Γλάρου είναι ένα από τα πιο όμορφα νεφελώματα. This wide-field view captures the evocative and colourful star formation region of the Seagull Nebula, IC 2177, on the borders of the constellations of Monoceros (The Unicorn) and Canis Major (The Great Dog). This view was created from images forming part of the Digitized Sky Survey 2. Credit: ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2. Acknowledgement: Davide De Martin

Το Νότιο Ευρωπαϊκό Παρατηρητήριο (ESO) έδωσε στη δημοσιότητα μια νέα λεπτομερή φωτογραφία του νεφελώματος IC 2177 που οι επιστήμονες έχουν ονομάσει «Νεφέλωμα του Γλάρου», αφού η εικόνα του θυμίζει το θαλασσοπούλι ενώ πετάει.


The Seagull nebula, seen in this infrared mosaic from NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, draws its common name from it resemblance to a gull in flight. But it depends on your point of view. When the image is rotated 180 degrees it bears a passing resemblance to a galloping lizard -- or perhaps a dragon or a dinosaur. The image spans an area about seven times as wide as the full moon, and three times as high (3.55 by 1.37 degrees), straddling the border between the constellations Monoceros and Canis Major (the Big Dog). So you might say this lizard is running with the Big Dog, while the gull is flying from it.

Astronomers catalog the nebula as IC 2177. This cosmic cloud is one of many sites of star formation within the Milky Way galaxy. It is located 3,800 light-years away from Earth, inside the Orion spur -- the same partial spiral arm of the Milky Way where our solar system is located. The nebula is nearly 240 light-years across.

Astronomers list the region near the seagull's eye (or lizard's hip) as NGC 2327, which contains a cluster of stars born about 1.5 million years ago. The eye is the brightest and hottest of the newborn stars in the entire nebula, and heats up the dust so that it glows in infrared light.

All four infrared detectors aboard WISE were used to make this image. Color is representational: blue and cyan represent infrared light at wavelengths of 3.4 and 4.6 microns, which is dominated by light from stars. Green and red represent light at 12 and 22 microns, which is mostly light from warm dust. Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

Το νεφέλωμα βρίσκεται σε απόσταση 3.700 ετών φωτός από την Γη ανάμεσα στους αστερισμούς του Μονόκερου και του Μεγάλου Κυνός. Την νέα εικόνα κατέγραψε η κάμερα Wide Field Imager του τηλεσκοπίου 2,2 μέτρων MPG/ESO στο Αστεροσκοπείο La Silla στη Χιλή.

Η κάμερα έκανε «ζουμ» σε μια περιοχή του νεφελώματος όπου η αλληλεπίδραση του φωτός και της υπεριώδους ακτινοβολίας των θερμών άστρων με τη κοσμική ύλη (αέρια, σκόνη) δημιουργούν ένα λαμπερό πολύχρωμο περιβάλλον. Οι αλληλεπιδράσεις «ζωγραφίζουν» κάποιες περιοχές με κοκκινωπή απόχρωση και άλλες με γαλαζωπή.


This video sequence starts with a broad view of the Milky Way before closing in on the familiar bright star Sirius and the nearby constellation of Orion (The Hunter). We see a faint red object resembling a bird in flight — the Seagull Nebula (IC 2177) and zoom in on what turns out to be a dramatic star formation region. The final view of the "wings" of the seagull is a detailed new image from the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope. Credit:ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2/Nick Risinger (skysurvey.org). - Panning across part of the Seagull Nebula: This pan video gives a close-up view of the intricate structure of part of the Seagull Nebula. These wisps of gas and dust are known as Sharpless 2-296 and form part of the "wings" of the celestial bird. This region of the sky is a fascinating muddle of intriguing astronomical objects — a mix of dark and glowing red clouds, weaving amongst bright stars. This new view was captured by the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope at ESO's La Silla Observatory in Chile. Credit:ESO



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