Astronomy picture of the day 12-09-2014 - A Sagittarius Starscape

A Sagittarius Starscape
Image Credit &Copyright:Terry Hancock(Down Under Observatory)

Explanation: This rich starscape spans nearly 7 degrees on the sky, toward theSagittarius spiral arm and the center of our Milky Way galaxy.A telescopic mosaic, it features well-known bright nebulae and star clusterscataloged by18th century cosmic tourist Charles Messier. Still popularstops for skygazers M16, the Eagle (far right), and M17, the Swan (near center) nebulae are the brightest star-forming emission regions.With wingspansof 100 light-years or so, they shine with the telltale reddish glow of hydrogen atoms from over 5,000 light-years away. Colorful open starcluster M25 near the upper left edge of the scene is closer, a mere 2,000 light-years distant and about 20 light-years across. M24, also known as theSagittarius Star Cloud, crowds in just left of center along the bottom of the frame, fainter and more distant Milky Way stars seen through a narrow window inobscuring fields of interstellar dust.