May 9, 2021
Every candle on your cake is a tiny imitation of the stars that made you possible.
Horsehead and Orion Nebulas
Birthday · May 9, 2021
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
Ready to give.
Free PNG · 1080 × 1350 · No account needed
Image rights and credit requirements apply when sharing or reusing imagery.
Date & occasion only
Change the year
APOD published May 9, 2021. Credit: Roberto Colombari & Federico Pelliccia. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
The dark Horsehead Nebula and the glowing Orion Nebula are contrasting cosmic vistas. Adrift 1,500 light-years away in one of the night sky's most recognizable constellations, they appear in opposite corners of the above stunning mosaic. The familiar Horsehead nebula appears as a dark cloud, a small silhouette notched against the long red glow at the lower left. Alnitak is the easternmost star in Orion's belt and is seen as the brightest star to the left of the Horsehead. Below Alnitak is the Flame Nebula, with clouds of bright emission and dramatic dark dust lanes. The magnificent emission region, the Orion Nebula (aka M42), lies at the upper right. Immediately to its left is a prominent reflection nebula sometimes called the Running Man. Pervasive tendrils of glowing hydrogen gas are easily traced throughout the region. Astrophysicists: Browse 2,500+ codes in the Astrophysics Source Code Library
Image credit: Roberto Colombari & Federico Pelliccia