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                           Astronomy Picture of the Day   
      
       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.   
      
                                  2022 January 24   
      
                          Rigel and the Witch Head Nebula   
                      Image Credit & Copyright: Jos+¬ Mtanous   
      
      Explanation: By starlight this eerie visage shines in the dark, a   
      crooked profile evoking its popular name, the Witch Head Nebula. In   
      fact, this entrancing telescopic portrait gives the impression that the   
      witch has fixed her gaze on Orion's bright supergiant star Rigel. More   
      formally known as IC 2118, the Witch Head Nebula spans about 50   
      light-years and is composed of interstellar dust grains reflecting   
      Rigel's starlight. The blue color of the Witch Head Nebula and of the   
      dust surrounding Rigel is caused not only by Rigel's intense blue   
      starlight but because the dust grains scatter blue light more   
      efficiently than red. The same physical process causes Earth's daytime   
      sky to appear blue, although the scatterers in Earth's atmosphere are   
      molecules of nitrogen and oxygen. Rigel, the Witch Head Nebula, and gas   
      and dust that surrounds them lie about 800 light-years away.   
      
                          Tomorrow's picture: open space   
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          Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)   
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