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APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09)

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 4:03 am
by APOD Robot
Image IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star Cloud from Hubble

Explanation: What's lighting up nebula IRAS 05437+2502? No one is sure. Particularly enigmatic is the bright upside-down V that defines the upper edge of this floating mountain of interstellar dust, visible near the image center. In general, this ghost-like nebula involves a small star forming region filled with dark dust that was first noted in images taken by the IRAS satellite in infrared light in 1983. Shown above is a spectacular, recently released image from the Hubble Space Telescope that, although showing many new details, has not uncovered a clear cause of the bright sharp arc. One hypothesis holds that the glowing arc was created by a massive star that somehow attained a high velocity and has now left the nebula. Small, faint IRAS 05437+2502 spans only 1/18th of a full moon toward the constellation of the Bull (Taurus).

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Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 4:28 am
by Beyond
What a nice picture! It looks soft and comfy - like Home. Is there a picture that shows more area?

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 4:46 am
by Noah
Not noted in the description is the fact that the "bright V" actually seems to be the tip of an even larger "V". It looks like a flashlight beam in a dusty room.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 5:22 am
by BMAONE23
To me it resembles children in school being enlightened by their teacher although they are all shrouded in a Gossamer Mystery

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 7:36 am
by Lasse H
How could a star that has already left the nebula still light up the arc? My suggestion for an explanation is that there is a very bright star, just hiding behind the pyramid of dark gas, but showing itself by illuminating the fringes of the upside-down 'V'. Just like the hair
light on hair from behind
light on hair from behind
motljus.jpg (23.15 KiB) Viewed 3915 times
in a back-lit portrait.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 10:53 am
by FrogSplash
Going with Greek mythology. The Upside-down V looks like mount Olympus and the bright star next to it could be Zeus's home.

FS

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 11:13 am
by pacfandave
Looks to me like Galacticus is about to ingest a star.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 11:31 am
by orin stepanek
It looks like it may be making it's own light. :?

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 11:33 am
by neufer
Image
elVis has now left the nebula, ladies & gentlemen!
elVis has left the nebula
http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/potw1008a/ wrote:
<<The little-known nebula IRAS 05437+2502 billows out among the bright stars and dark dust clouds that surround it in this striking image from the Hubble Space Telescope. It is located in the constellation of Taurus (the Bull), close to the central plane of our Milky Way galaxy. Unlike many of Hubble’s targets, this object has not been studied in detail and its exact nature is unclear. At first glance it appears to be a small, rather isolated, region of star formation and one might assume that the effects of fierce ultraviolet radiation from bright young stars probably were the cause of the eye-catching shapes of the gas. However, the bright boomerang-shaped feature may tell a more dramatic tale. The interaction of a high velocity young star and the cloud of gas and dust may have created this unusually sharp-edged bright arc. Such a reckless star would have been ejected from the distant young cluster where it was born and would travel at 200,000 km/hour or more through the nebula.>>
New Horizons spacecraft has been traveling at 67,000 km/hour towards Pluto.
We are all traveling at about 107,000 km/hour around the sun.
The Helios space probe attained a peak speed of 243,000 km/hour.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 11:37 am
by ozalba
It strikes me that we are not looking at a backlit cone-shaped 'floating mountain', but a backlit v-shaped 'arch'. There does appear to be a star at the apex of the arch, which would seem to be a candidate for the source of the light, but it could also be another star hidden from view, higher up. Further, the lower sections of the inverted V could be generated by a shadow effect, rather than being the physical edge of a cloud (think crepuscular rays).

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 11:47 am
by Henning Makholm
Lasse H wrote:How could a star that has already left the nebula still light up the arc?
By having heated up the arc material enough that it is still hot enough to glow on its own.

The image is not in true color, so the arc does not have to be quite as hot as it looks. There is some near-infrared in it. Its continuous spectrum would be rather interesting to have, I think ...

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 12:03 pm
by bystander
First seen on the Observation Deck, here and here.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 12:11 pm
by bluebird
Might want to consider a "Fusion Nebula" - a section of a nebula where the density/temp have achieved the levels to achieve a sustaining fusion reaction.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 12:46 pm
by mihondo2010
Can one use 'reverse ray tracing' to figure out the source of the light? Some parts of the cloud is in shadow, some in light. Might be possible to calculate from that where the source of light is / was.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 1:26 pm
by grc5344
the star is at the tip of the v,moving very fast thru the dust cloud and leaving a bow wake,there are two stern wakes below the v.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 1:27 pm
by Henning Makholm
bluebird wrote:Might want to consider a "Fusion Nebula" - a section of a nebula where the density/temp have achieved the levels to achieve a sustaining fusion reaction.
That's called "star formation".

It is impossible to meet the required conditions simultaneously in an area large enough to quailfy as a nebula in itself. So much matter would be needed that the entire region would acquire an event horizon and collapse into a black hole.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 1:58 pm
by Ann
ElVis has left the nebula, leaving his V behind!

Elis has left the nebula!

Ann

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 2:10 pm
by León
Although difficult to secure, it appears that the peak will become a protostar section where it appears bright, in fact, all the upper sections of the dust are slightly active.
Image

It's classic aphorism "stardust" is proven that it will be born a new "star of dust"
Image

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 2:48 pm
by neufer
Ann wrote:ElVis has left the nebula, leaving his V behind!

Elis has left the nebula!
Image
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elis wrote:
<<Elis (Ancient Greek: Ἦλις) is an ancient district in southern Greece on the Peloponnesos peninsula. The first Olympic festival was organized in Elean land, Olympia, Greece by the authorities of Elis in 776 BCE. The local form of the name was Valis, or Valeia, and its meaning, in all probability, “the lowland” (compare with the word "Valley"). According to Strabo, the first settlement was created by Oxylus the Aetolian. The city, built in 471 BC, had the authority of the Olympic games and believed to be a holy city, so was unwalled. The Eleans built a temple dedicated to Hades in one of the precincts of Elis. Once a year, the doors to the Temple of Hades would open, however, no one would enter bar the priests.>>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preseli_Hills wrote:
<<The Presely Hills or Presely Mountains (Welsh: Mynydd Y Preseli / Y Preselau) are a range of hills in north Pembrokeshire, West Wales. The hills rise to 536 metres above sea level at Foel Cwmcerwyn and are dotted with prehistoric remains including evidence of Neolithic settlement. In 1923, the petrologist Herbert Henry Thomas identified that Bluestone from the hills corresponded to that used to build the inner circle of Stonehenge.>>

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 3:06 pm
by wbk79
The minute I saw this I thought of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry... it looks like the castle.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 3:24 pm
by biddie67
This is a spectacular photo - it could be used as a Christmas card .....

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 5:27 pm
by mexhunter
Hello to all:
It is a magical area.
Regards
Cesar

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 6:14 pm
by moonstruck
God bless the Hubble Space Telescope---- and the guys who made it especially. :|

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Tue Aug 10, 2010 12:34 am
by aviatorone
They should rename this to, "Gods Hand'.

Re: APOD: IRAS 05437 2502: An Enigmatic Star... (2010 Aug 09

Posted: Tue Aug 10, 2010 2:51 am
by BMAONE23
aviatorone wrote:They should rename this to, "Gods Hand'.
Actually, I think this APOD would more aptly carry that title