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Birthday · November 26, 2020

The Great Turkey Nebula

November 26, 2020

The universe does not repeat itself. Every sunrise is unique, every snowflake singular, and every birthday yours alone.

The Great Turkey Nebula

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APOD published November 26, 2020. Credit: Eric Coles. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.

Behind the image

The Great Turkey Nebula

Original APOD · November 26, 2020

Surprisingly reminiscent of The Great Nebula in Orion, The Great Turkey Nebula spans this creative field of view. Of course if it were the Orion Nebula it would be our closest large stellar nursery, found at the edge of a large molecular cloud a mere 1,500 light-years away. Also known as M42, the Orion Nebula is visible to the eye as the middle "star" in the sword of Orion the Hunter, a constellation now rising in planet Earth's evening skies. Stellar winds from clusters of newborn stars scattered throughout the Orion Nebula sculpt its ridges and cavities seen in familiar in telescopic images. Much larger than any bird you might be cooking, this Great Turkey Nebula was imagined to be similar in size to the Orion Nebula, about 13 light-years across. Stay safe and well.

Image credit: Eric Coles

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