August 29, 1996
You share your birthday with the light of distant galaxies that has been traveling for millions of years just to arrive here, now, alongside...
M17: The Majestic Swan Nebula
Birthday · August 29, 1996
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APOD published August 29, 1996. Credit: B. Wallis and R. Provin. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
What unusual eggs have been laid by this majestic swan? The star forming region above, known as Swan Nebula, is the home of hot red-glowing gas, dark lanes of dust, bright young stars and -- what are those? Of the few stars visible in the Swan Nebula, several have quite unusual colors and are hypothesized to be very young stars still shrouded by gas from the cloud that formed them. The Swan Nebula is quite large and massive as it contains roughly 1000 times the mass of our Sun. The bright central region is about 15 light years across lies about 5000 light years away toward the constellation of Sagittarius. The distinctive shape causes this region to have several other names, including the Omega Nebula, the Horseshoe Nebula, and the Lobster Nebula.
Image credit: B. Wallis and R. Provin