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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.

                              2025 December 17
    A starfield surrounds the edges of a large nebula. The nebula, itself
     full of stars, has a blue glowing interior and an orange periphery
   dotted with dust pillars. Please see the explanation for more detailed
                                information.

                             W5: The Soul Nebula
                   Image Credit & Copyright: Jeffrey Horne

   Explanation: Stars are forming in the Soul of the Queen of Aethopia.
   More specifically, a large star forming region called the Soul Nebula
   can be found in the direction of the constellation Cassiopeia, whom
   Greek mythology credits as the vain wife of a King who long ago ruled
   lands surrounding the upper Nile river. Also known as Westerhout 5
   (W5), the Soul Nebula houses several open clusters of stars, ridges and
   pillars darkened by cosmic dust, and huge evacuated bubbles formed by
   the winds of young massive stars. Located about 6,500 light years away,
   the Soul Nebula spans about 100 light years and is usually imaged next
   to its celestial neighbor the Heart Nebula (IC 1805). The featured
   image, taken from near Nashville, Tennessee, USA, is a composite of 234
   hours of exposures made in different colors: red as emitted by hydrogen
   gas, yellow as emitted by sulfur, and blue as emitted by oxygen.

                 Explore the Universe: Random APOD Generator
                Tomorrow's picture: Jupiter and the Geminids
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