Explanation:
NGC 1333 is seen in visible light as
a reflection nebula,
dominated by bluish hues characteristic of starlight reflected by dust.
A mere 1,000 light-years distant toward the heroic constellation
Perseus,
it lies at the edge of a large,
star-forming molecular cloud.
This striking close-up view spans
about 4 light-years at the estimated distance
of
NGC 1313.
It shows details of the dusty region
along with hints of contrasting emission in red
jets
and glowing gas from recently formed stars.
In fact, NGC 1333 contains hundreds of stars less than
a million years old,
most still hidden from optical
telescopes by the pervasive stardust.
The chaotic environment may be similar to one in which our own Sun
formed over 4.5 billion years ago.
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