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Barnard's Loop

Barnard's Loop is a large emission nebula in the constellation Orion, forming a semicircular arc around the Orion Nebula. It is part of the Orion molecular cloud complex and is believed to have been formed by a supernova explosion approximately 2 million years ago.

Source: constellation-guide.com

APODs including "Barnard's Loop"

Camera Orion Rising

31/01/2024

Camera Orion Rising
Image Credit: Marcin Ślipko / NASA APOD

What does Orion rising look like to a camera? During this time of the year, the famous constellation is visible to the southeast just after sunset. From most Earthly locations, Orion's familiar star pattern, highlighted by the three-stars-in-a-row belt stars, rises sideways. An entire section of the night sky that includes Orion was photographed rising above Śnieżka, a mountain on the border between Poland and the Czech Republic. The long duration exposure sequence brings up many faint features including the Orion and Flame Nebulas, both encompassed by the curving Barnard's Loop. The featured wide-angle camera composite also captured night sky icons including the blue Pleiades star cluster at the image top and the red Rosette Nebula to the left of Orion. Famous stars in the frame include Procyon, Betelgeuse, Rigel and Aldebaran. Orion will appear successively higher in the sky at sunset during the coming months.