﻿ 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 September 4 [2]Red glowing gas is seen before a dark starfield. On the upper right is a complicated filamentary nebula in blue and red. On the lower left is a simple circular nebula in blue. Please see the explanation for more detailed information. Cygnus: Bubble and Crescent Credit & Copyright: [3]Abdullah Al-Harbi Explanation: As stars die, they create clouds. Two stellar death clouds of gas and dust can be found toward the high-flying constellation of the Swan (Cygnus) as they [4]drift through rich star fields in the plane of our [5]Milky Way Galaxy. Caught here within the [6]telescopic field of view are the [7]Soap Bubble (lower left) and the [8]Crescent Nebula (upper right). Both were formed at the final phase in the life of a star. Also known as NGC 6888, the Crescent Nebula was shaped as its bright, central massive [9]Wolf-Rayet star, WR 136, shed its outer envelope in a strong stellar wind. Burning through fuel at a prodigious rate, WR 136 is near the end of [10]a short life that should finish in a spectacular [11]supernova explosion. [12]Discovered in 2013, the Soap Bubble Nebula is likely a [13]planetary nebula, the final shroud of a lower mass, long-lived, Sun-like star destined to become a slowly cooling white dwarf. Both stellar nebulas are about 5,000 [14]light-years distant, with the larger Crescent Nebula [15]spanning about 25 light-years across. Within a few million years, both will likely have dispersed. Your Sky Surprise: [16]What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (post 1995) Tomorrow's picture: blue supermoon __________________________________________________________________ [17]< | [18]Archive | [19]Submissions | [20]Index | [21]Search | [22]Calendar | [23]RSS | [24]Education | [25]About APOD | [26]Discuss | [27]> __________________________________________________________________ Authors & editors: [28]Robert Nemiroff ([29]MTU) & [30]Jerry Bonnell ([31]UMCP) NASA Official: Phillip Newman [32]Specific rights apply. [33]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices A service of: [34]ASD at [35]NASA / [36]GSFC, [37]NASA Science Activation & [38]Michigan Tech. U. References 1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2309/CrescentBubble_AlHarbi_5732.jpg 3. https://www.instagram.com/a_alharbi97/ 4. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap150819.html 5. http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/galaxy.html 6. https://www.instagram.com/p/CvNSVbhsXYs/ 7. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap150113.html 8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap210617.html 9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf–Rayet_star 10. https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/hubble-view-wolf-rayet-stars-intense-and-short-lived 11. https://youtu.be/wymMn-SmALY 12. http://www.starimager.com/Image Gallery Pages/Hydrogen Alpha Images/ic 1318_AP_8 pane mosaic_bubble nebula.htm 13. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planetary_nebula 14. https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/light-year/en/ 15. https://media.istockphoto.com/id/1170788685/photo/jumping-cat.jpg?s=612x612&w=0&k=20&c=_Ot_m-qULa-AS2ueDMH8Qc4vu8jdsNso2hzIxsVGjTw= 16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230903.html 18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html 19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html 20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html 21. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search 22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html 23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss 24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html 25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html 26. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=230904 27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230905.html 28. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html 29. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/ 30. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html 31. http://www.astro.umd.edu/ 32. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply 33. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html 34. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/ 35. https://www.nasa.gov/ 36. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/ 37. https://science.nasa.gov/learners 38. http://www.mtu.edu/