Like a cosmic butterfly, a cluster of young stars is just emerging from its cocoon — a cloud of gas and dust known as the Cocoon Nebula. The cocoon spans about 45 light-years. Parts of the gas cloud are lit up by the brightest of the infant stars taking shape there, creating a glowing patch of red and blue. It is about 4,000 light-years away, in Cygnus. Parts of the nebula are still dark. They’re made of dense clouds of cold dust, although they, too, are giving birth to new stars. [Adam Block/Mount Lemmon SkyCenter/University of Arizona]
Find out more in our radio program entitled Cocoon Nebula.