NASA’s Hubble Telescope Reveals Cosmic Reef 163,000 Light-Years Away

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, a source of awe-inspiring imagery, recently treated space enthusiasts to a mesmerizing sight. In a post on their Instagram handle, NASA shared two striking images, captured by the Hubble telescope, showcasing a celestial phenomenon it referred to as the ”cosmic reef”. Located 163,000 light-years from Earth within the constellation Dorado, this cosmic display remarkably resembles the vibrant coral reefs found in Earth’s oceans.
The captivating images feature two neighboring clouds of cosmic dust and gas. The primary attractions are the giant red nebula NGC 2014 and its smaller, blue neighbor, NGC 2020. These nebulae are integral components of a vast star-forming region within the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way that abounds with massive stars.
According to NASA, the stars situated near the image’s center are 10 to 20 times the size of our Sun. Their powerful radiation intensely heats the surrounding dense gases, notably oxygen, which glows in a mesmerizing light blue at temperatures reaching 20,000°F (11,000°C). The adjacent nebula in the lower left, a striking image of gas, emerged from a star over 200,000 times brighter than our Sun, expelling gas through a series of eruptive events.
As one gazes upon the image, a bright blue ring with a central dot emerges in the bottom left. Waves of red and orange gas ripple across the frame, resembling arcs from top left to top right. An ethereal light blue center shines amidst the red sea, while several bright white dots sparkle through. In the top right corner, dark blue gas emanates from the boundless abyss of space.
Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 captured this extraordinary sight, commemorating the telescope’s three decades in space. Reactions to this awe-inspiring image have been resoundingly positive, with viewers describing it as “awesome” and “beautiful.” One admirer aptly termed it “Ice & Fire.”
The Hubble Space Telescope, launched on April 24, 1990, has provided invaluable insights and generated over 1.4 million observations of nearly 47,000 celestial objects. Named after the renowned American astronomer Edwin P. Hubble, who confirmed the ever-expanding nature of our universe, Hubble has traveled more than 175,000 times around Earth, covering approximately 4.4 billion miles during its remarkable 30-year journey in space.
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