The Iris Nebula: NGC 7023 |
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This beautifully symmetric nebula, dubbed The Iris Nebula
for its floral patterns, surrounds a very young and very
massive new star in the constellation Cepheus.
A mere 1300 light years from us, this nebula glows by reflecting the light of its central star. The bluish color is the result of the same processes that turn our own sky blue. In our sky, the blue color results from sunlight that has been scattered by molecules and dust particles of our atmosphere. For this reason, also, the sun appears red as it rises or sets - the blue light has been scattered away, leaving only red. In the Iris nebula, the gas and dust doing the scattering are leftovers from the star's formation.
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