Explanation:
When stars form, pandemonium reigns.
A particularly colorful case is the star forming region
Simeis 188 which houses an unusual and bright cloud arc
cataloged as NGC 6559.
Visible above are red glowing
emission nebulas of
hydrogen, blue
reflection nebulas of
dust, dark
absorption nebulas of dust, and the stars that formed from them.
The first massive stars
formed from the dense gas will emit
energetic light and
winds
that erode, fragment, and
sculpt their birthplace.
And then they
explode.
The resulting morass
can be as beautiful as it is complex.
After tens of millions of years, the
dust boils away,
the gas gets swept away, and all that is left is a naked
open cluster of stars.
Simeis 188
is located about 4,000 light years away and
can be found about one degree northeast of
M8, the Lagoon Nebula.
Slide Set
(ASOW):
Galaxies in Collision by Prof. Rob Knop
