The following details
for each photo have been written by astronomers and scientists who may not hold to a
Christian world view.
Therefore, the scientific description of the images may contain statements or
ideas that are inconsistent with what Christians hold to be true regarding these
images from a creationist perspective.
Photo #26 The Dumbbell Nebula M27: Not A Comet Explanation: While searching the skies above 18th century France for comets, astronomer Charles Messier diligently recorded this object as number 27 on his list of things which are definitely not comets. So what is it? Well, 21st century astronomers would classify it as a Planetary Nebula . . . but it's not a planet either, even though it may appear round and planet-like in a small telescope. Messier 27 (M27) is now known to be an excellent example of a gaseous emission nebula created as a sun - like star runs out of nuclear fuel in its core. The nebula forms as the star's outer layers are expelled into space. The visible glow is generated as atoms are excited by the dying star's intense but invisible ultraviolet light. Known by the popular name Dumbbell Nebula, the beautifully symmetric interstellar gas cloud is about 1,200 light-years away in the constellation Vulpecula. This gorgeous synthetic color picture of M27 was produced during testing of one of the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescopes.
Photo #27
Nebulas Surrounding Wolf-Rayet Binary BAT99-49
Explanation: How could two young stars power these colorful interstellar gas
clouds? Although hidden by thick dust, the stars spew forceful ions and
energetic radiation that cause the clouds to fragment and light up. The above
composite color image from
the European Southern Observatory's Melipal VLT tlescope resolves details in the
nebula complex known as BAT99-49, with emission from helium atoms in blue hues,
oxygen atoms in green, and hydrogen atoms in red.
Located in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), the largest satellite galaxy to our
own Milky Way Galaxy, one of the stars in the central binary is an
enigmatic Wolf - Rayet star while the other is a massive O star. Wolf - Rayet
stars have some of the hottest surfaces in the universe, while O stars are the
most massive and energetic of normal main sequence stars.
Back To: Page 1 / Photo Details