May 8, 2008
The universe does not repeat itself. Every sunrise is unique, every snowflake singular, and every birthday yours alone.
The Dark Tower in Scorpius
Birthday · May 8, 2008
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APOD published May 8, 2008. Credit: Robert Gendler. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
In silhouette against a crowded star field toward the constellation Scorpius, this dusty cosmic cloud evokes for some the image of an ominous dark tower. In fact, clumps of dust and molecular gas collapsing to form stars may well lurk within the dark nebula, a structure that spans almost 40 light-years across the gorgeous telescopic view. Known as a cometary globule, the swept-back cloud, extending from the upper right to the head (top of the tower) left and below center, is shaped by intense ultraviolet radiation from the OB association of very hot stars in NGC 6231, off the left edge of the scene. That energetic ultraviolet light also powers the globule's bordering reddish glow of hydrogen gas. Hot stars embedded in the dust can be seen as small bluish reflection nebulae. This dark tower, NGC 6231, and associated nebulae are about 5,000 light-years away.
Image credit: Robert Gendler