Friday, October 14, 2011

APOD 1.7- The Color of IC 1795



In this picture of IC 1795 you are gazing at glowing gas and obscuring dust clouds. This is in the constellation Cassiopeia and appears to be a dominantly red color. This very light-sensitve camera which took this photo has a narrow filter thaat only transmits H-alpha light which is the red light of hydrogen atoms. To make this H-alpha light, a hydrogen atom emits this H-alpha light while its electron is recaptured. Pretty close to this area is the Heart Nebula, which appears as a red dust and gaseous heart shape.


IC 1795 and the Heart Nebula are located 6,000 light years away and the whole APOD picture would span about a 70-light year distance.

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