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Astronomy Picture of the Day -- Thackeray's Globules
NASA ^ | June 12, 2012 | (see photo credit)

Posted on 06/12/2012 7:22:25 PM PDT by SunkenCiv

Explanation: These are larger dust bunnies than you will find under your bed. Situated in rich star fields and glowing hydrogen gas, these opaque clouds of interstellar dust and gas are so large they might be able to form stars. Their home is known as IC 2944, a bright stellar nursery located about 5,900 light years away toward the constellation of Centaurus. The largest of these dark globules, first spotted by South African astronomer A. D. Thackeray in 1950, is likely two separate but overlapping clouds, each more than one light-year wide. Along with other data, the above representative color image from the 4-m Blanco telescope at Cerro Tololo, Chile indicates that Thackeray's globules are fractured and churning as a result of intense ultraviolet radiation from young, hot stars already energizing and heating the bright emission nebula. These and similar dark globules known to be associated with other star forming regions may ultimately be dissipated by their hostile environment -- like cosmic lumps of butter in a hot frying pan.

June 12, 2012

(Excerpt) Read more at 129.164.179.22 ...


TOPICS: Astronomy; Astronomy Picture of the Day; Science
KEYWORDS: apod; astronomy; centaurus; chile; ic2944; science
[Credit & Copyright: T. Rector (U. Alaska Anchorage), & N.S. van der Bliek (NOAO/AURA/NSF)]

1 posted on 06/12/2012 7:22:35 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
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Ooops, I arfed up the image credit:
[Credit & Copyright: T. Rector (U. Alaska Anchorage), & N.S. van der Bliek (NOAO/AURA/NSF)]

2 posted on 06/12/2012 7:24:14 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: brytlea; cripplecreek; decimon; bigheadfred; KoRn; Grammy; married21; steelyourfaith; Mmogamer; ...
3x the Astronomy Images: Follow cool APOD submissions on Facebook and Google Plus.

3 posted on 06/12/2012 7:24:45 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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Oh, never mind, THEY arfed up the image credit links.


4 posted on 06/12/2012 7:26:37 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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Oh, never mind, THEY arfed up the image credit links.


5 posted on 06/12/2012 7:26:52 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: SunkenCiv
Thackeray's Globules

That just sounds dirty.

Which is probably why I'm here.

6 posted on 06/12/2012 7:35:37 PM PDT by martin_fierro (< |:)~)
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To: SunkenCiv

Still cool stuff.


7 posted on 06/12/2012 7:36:50 PM PDT by cripplecreek (What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul?)
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To: martin_fierro

I thought the same thing. lol

Boobies are cool.


8 posted on 06/12/2012 7:38:32 PM PDT by cripplecreek (What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul?)
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To: martin_fierro

I guess this explains the middle name “makepiece”.


9 posted on 06/12/2012 7:44:44 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: cripplecreek
Boobies are cool.

That explains the blue feet...

10 posted on 06/12/2012 8:20:14 PM PDT by null and void (Day 1239 of our ObamaVacation from reality - Obama is not a Big Brother [he's a Big Sissy...])
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