IC1396 The Elephant Trunk is a dense, elongated cloud of gas inside a bright cluster of stars known as IC1396. The trunk conceals many young protostars that are in the process of forming. IC 1396 mixes glowing cosmic gas and dark dust clouds in the high and far off constellation of Cepheus. The Elephant’s Trunk Nebula is over 20 lightyears long and can be found running through IC 1396, a young
star cluster embedded within a cloud of glowing, ionised gas.The Elephant’s Trunk is composed of cool interstellar dust and gas, which blocks out light on its way to Earth and leaves behind a long, thin silhouette that gives the nebula its name and makes it one of many
nebulae that look like animals).The IC1396 is also referred to as the "Elephant's Trunk
nebula" on the grounds of part of the nebula has an outstretched area looking like an elephant extending his trunk. You should be able to see the actual trunk in the middle of the nebula to the right.
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