Astronomy Picture of the Day [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2023 August 17 [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available. A Cosmic Zoo in Cepheus Image Credit & [3]Copyright: [4]Yann Sainty Explanation: Sprawling emission nebulae IC 1396 and Sh2-129 mix glowing interstellar gas and dark dust clouds in this nearly [5]12 degree wide field of view toward the northern constellation [6]Cepheus the King. Energized by its central star [7]IC 1396 (left), is hundreds of light-years across and some 3,000 light-years distant. The nebula's intriguing dark shapes include a winding dark cloud popularly known as the [8]Elephant's Trunk below and right of center. Tens of light-years long, it holds the raw material for star formation and is known to hide [9]protostars within. Located a similar distance from planet Earth, the bright knots and swept back ridges of emission of Sh2-129 on the right suggest its popular name, the [10]Flying Bat Nebula. Within the Flying Bat, the most recently recognized addition to this royal cosmic zoo is the faint bluish emission from Ou4, the [11]Giant Squid Nebula. Near the lower right edge of the frame, the suggestive dark marking on the sky cataloged as Barnard 150 is also known as the [12]dark Seahorse Nebula. Notable submissions to APOD: [13]Perseids Meteor Shower 2023 Tomorrow's picture: northern Pluto __________________________________________________________________ [14]< | [15]Archive | [16]Submissions | [17]Index | [18]Search | [19]Calendar | [20]RSS | [21]Education | [22]About APOD | [23]Discuss | [24]> __________________________________________________________________ Authors & editors: [25]Robert Nemiroff ([26]MTU) & [27]Jerry Bonnell ([28]UMCP) NASA Official: Phillip Newman [29]Specific rights apply. [30]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices A service of: [31]ASD at [32]NASA / [33]GSFC [34]NASA Science Activation & [35]Michigan Tech. U. References 1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2308/ElephantTrunkBatSquidSeahorse.jpg 3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 4. https://www.astrobin.com/users/yann_sainty/ 5. https://www.astrobin.com/g6612z/ 6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cepheus_(constellation) 7. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap120805.html 8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap190816.html 9. https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/images/multi-wavelength-views-of-protostars-in-ic-1396 10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap201007.html 11. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap140718.html 12. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230420.html 13. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.278469731548278&type=3 14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230816.html 15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html 17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html 18. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search 19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss 21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html 22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html 23. http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=230817 24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230818.html 25. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html 26. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/ 27. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html 28. http://www.astro.umd.edu/ 29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 30. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html 31. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 32. https://www.nasa.gov/ 33. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/ 34. https://science.nasa.gov/learners 35. http://www.mtu.edu/