November 14, 2011 - The Dark Side of Nebulosity
The Dark Side of Nebulosity The Cone Nebula is part of NGC 2264, a rich region of nebulosity 2,500 light-years away in the constellation Monoceros. Other parts of NGC 2264 include the Christmas Tree Cluster and the Fox Fur Nebula, but the Cone, rising in the bottom half of this image, is the most easily visible. A towering pillar of dark obscuring dust and glowing gas, the Cone rises seven light-years from its base. Ultraviolet radiation from hot, young, nearby stars heats the edges of the dark cloud, releasing gas into the relatively empty region of surrounding space. There, additional ultraviolet radiation causes the hydrogen gas to glow, which produces the pink halo of light seen around the pillar. Over time, only the densest regions of the Cone will remain, becoming the birthplace of new stars.
Image credit: R. Jay GaBany / www.cosmotography.com
Weekly Calendar
November 14-20, 2011
Holidays - Sky Events - Space History
Monday 14
Mercury at greatest elongation (23° E)
1969: Apollo 12 launched, second lunar landing mission
2008: STS-126 Endeavour launched
2011: Soyuz TMA-22 launched carrying ISS Expedition 29/30 crew
Tuesday 15
1738: William Herschel born
1973: First powered flight of X-24B lifting body
1988: Green Bank 300-foot radio telescope collapses
1988: Soviet Shuttle Buran launched
Wednesday 16
1962: Saturn SA-3 launched
1973: Skylab 4 crew launched on 84-day mission
1974: Interstellar message broadcast from Arecibo radio telescope
2009: STS-129 Atlantis launched
Thursday 17
Leonid meteor shower
1970: Luna 17 lands on Moon; Lunokhod 1 rover becomes first wheeled vehicle on Moon
Friday 18
Last Quarter Moon 10:09 AM ET
Leonid meteor shower
1923: Alan Shepard born
1989: Cosmic Background Explorer launched
Saturday 19
Mars 8° north of Moon
1969: Apollo 12 makes second lunar landing
1996: STS-80 Columbia launched
1997: STS-87 Columbia launched
2005: Hayabusa spacecraft makes first liftoff from an asteroid
Sunday 20
1889: Edwin Hubble born
1998: Zarya module launched, first element of International Space Station
2002: First Delta IV launched
2004: Swift spacecraft launched