Baby stars spew from cosmic 'witch head'
Courtesy: NASA/JPL-Caltech
theweathernetwork.com
Friday, November 1, 2013, 2:53 PM -
Halloween is now behind us, but spooky things are still happening in outer space.
Case in point: NASA's latest featured image, which depicts the Witch Head nebula spewing out baby stars.
The recent image was captured by NASA's Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer, also known of as WISE.
Here's more from the space agency:
"The infrared portrait shows the Witch Head nebula, named after its resemblance to the profile of a wicked witch. Astronomers say the billowy clouds of the nebula, where baby stars are brewing, are being lit up by massive stars.
Dust in the cloud is being hit with starlight, causing it to glow with infrared light, which was picked up by WISE's detectors. The Witch Head nebula is estimated to be hundreds of light-years away in the Orion constellation, just off the famous hunter's knee."
