Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Sagittarius (Sgr)  ·  Contains:  7 Sgr  ·  9 Sgr  ·  B296  ·  B88  ·  B89  ·  Hourglass nebula  ·  Lagoon nebula  ·  M 8  ·  NGC 6523  ·  NGC 6526  ·  NGC 6530  ·  The star 7Sgr  ·  The star 9Sgr
M8 - Closeup View, Gary Imm
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M8 - Closeup View

M8 - Closeup View, Gary Imm
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M8 - Closeup View

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Description

This brilliant object is a large, bright emission nebula in the constellation of Sagittarius (the Archer). Located about 5000 light-years away, the nebula is a giant interstellar cloud one hundred light-years across. The bright colors of these image are due to the large concentrations of hydrogen, oxygen, and sulfur gas throughout the nebula. The nebula appears to be undergoing a period of active star formation and has already formed a sizable cluster of about 50 stars seen towards the top of the image. The nebula’s apparent size is about three times the size of the full Moon. The Lagoon Nebula is one of two star-forming nebulae that can be seen without binoculars from mid-northern latitudes - the other is the famous Orion Nebula. This area boasts many large, hot stars, whose ultraviolet radiation sculpts the gas and dust into unusual shapes. Two of these giant stars illuminate the brightest part of the nebula, known as the Hourglass Nebula, at the center of this image. Looking closely around the center, you can see many Bok globules. These are dark clouds of dense dust, in which new stars are being formed.

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