Explanation:
Dusty NGC 1333
is seen as a reflection nebula
in visible light images, sporting bluish hues characteristic
of starlight reflected by dust.
But at longer infrared wavelengths, the
interstellar
dust itself glows - shown in red in this false-color
Spitzer Space Telescope image.
The penetrating
infrared view also shows youthful stars
that would otherwise still be obscured by the
dusty clouds
which formed them.
Notably, greenish streaks and splotches that seem to
litter the region trace the glow of
cosmic jets blasting away
from emerging young stellar objects as the jets plow into the
cold cloud material.
In all, the chaotic
scene likely resembles one in which our own
Sun formed over 4.5 billion years ago.
NGC
1300 is a mere 1,000 light-years distant in the constellation
Perseus.
