By Neha Yadav
Published Jul 20, 2024

Hindustan Times
In Focus

Photo Credits: David Moulton/NASA

NASA's stellar selection: 10 captivating 'Astronomy Pictures of the Day'

The US space agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) regularly shares stunning 'Astronomy Pictures of the Day'. Here are some starry pictures shared by NASA.

This captivating image is of a star exploding in the constellation Vela, about 11,000 years ago. It shows gigantic filamentary shock waves in visible light amidst gas and dust. 

This gorgeous image is of a spiral galaxy NGC 1055, a dominant member of a small galaxy group, 60 million light-years away towards the constellation Cetus.

This surreal image is of the Seagull Nebula made from a broad expanse of glowing gas and dust resembling a bird's head. 

This marvellous image of a supernova remnant Simeis 147 shows the filamentary nebula called the Spaghetti Nebula. It is situated towards the constellations Taurus and Auriga.

This pretty celestial abstract art is of a dusty nebula NGC 2170, also known as the Angel Nebula. This painting shows stars surrounding the colourful gas and dusty region in the nebula.

Here's a splendid image of a globular star cluster Omega Centauri, also known as NGC 2139. This cluster is packed with about 10 million stars older than the Sun, about 15,000 light-years away from Earth.

Take a look at this stunning image of the Tarantula Nebula, also known as 30 Doradus. This giant star-forming region in the Large  Magellanic Cloud is more than a thousand light-years in diameter. 

This spectacular image is of the Great Carina Nebula or NGC 3372. It is one of our galaxy's largest star-forming regions. Spanning over 300 light-years, this nebula is surrounded by interstellar gas and cosmic dust clouds.

Captured by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, this astounding image is of the galaxy NGC 7714 stretched and distorted by a collision with a neighbouring galaxy. 

This mesmerising image is a two-degree wide telescopic field view of the Comet Pons-Brooks spotted along with the bright yellowish star Hamal also known as Alpha Arietis.