January 15, 2018
Light takes eight minutes to travel from the Sun to the Earth. It took the universe 13.8 billion years to make you.
Rigel and the Witch Head Nebula
Birthday · January 15, 2018
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APOD published January 15, 2018. Credit: Mario Cogo (Galax Lux). A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
By starlight this eerie visage shines in the dark, a crooked profile evoking its popular name, the Witch Head Nebula. In fact, this entrancing telescopic portrait gives the impression that the witch has fixed her gaze on Orion's bright supergiant star Rigel. More formally known as IC 2118, the Witch Head Nebula spans about 50 light-years and is composed of interstellar dust grains reflecting Rigel's starlight. The blue color of the Witch Head Nebula and of the dust surrounding Rigel is caused not only by Rigel's intense blue starlight but because the dust grains scatter blue light more efficiently than red. The same physical process causes Earth's daytime sky to appear blue, although the scatterers in Earth's atmosphere are molecules of nitrogen and oxygen. Rigel, the Witch Head Nebula, and gas and dust that surrounds them lie about 800 light-years away. Open Science: Browse 1,600+ codes in the Astrophysics Source Code Library
Image credit: Mario Cogo (Galax Lux)