NGC 7023: The Iris Nebula
Image Credit &
Copyright:
Satwant Kumar
These cosmic clouds have blossomed 1,300 light-years away,
in the fertile starfields of the
constellation
Cepheus.
Called the Iris Nebula,
NGC 7023
is not the only nebula
to evoke the imagery of flowers.
Still, this
deep telescopic image
shows off the Iris Nebula's range of
colors and symmetries, embedded in surrounding
fields of interstellar dust.
Within the Iris itself, dusty nebular material surrounds a hot,
young star.
The dominant color of the brighter reflection nebula is blue,
characteristic of dust grains reflecting starlight.
Central filaments
of the reflection nebula glow with a faint reddish
photoluminesence as some dust grains
effectively convert
the star's invisible
ultraviolet radiation to visible red light.
Infrared
observations
indicate that this nebula contains
complex carbon molecules known as
PAHs.
The dusty blue petals of the Iris Nebula span about six light-years.