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Astronomy Picture of the Day - NGC 300: A Cosmic Gemstone with Stars and Gas Clouds
NASA ^ | 16 Jul, 2026 | Image Credit & Copyright: Team Ciel Austral Text: Cecilia Chirenti (NASA GSFC, UMCP, CRESST II)

Posted on 07/16/2026 12:04:51 PM PDT by MtnClimber

Explanation: This sparkling, colorful gemstone is a spiral galaxy, NGC 300. It is one of the closest spiral galaxies to Earth, only about 6 million light-years away. But does it really look like this? Here is a more standard portrait of it. This unusual image combines the light from the stars and dust within the galaxy with the light from ionized clouds of interstellar gas shown in red (Sulphur), green (Hydrogen) and blue (Oxygen). Combining red and green light in different proportions makes yellow or orange light, most visible in the image. Light from other ionized gases is also at work in neon signs, fluorescent tubes and street lights. These massive clouds of ionized gas are typically created by young, massive stars that produce high-energy ultraviolet radiation capable of ionizing the gas. Massive stars are short-lived, compared with lighter stars like our sun, and explode as supernovas at the end of their lives. Some of the colorful clouds in the image could be hiding supernova remnants.


TOPICS: Astronomy; Astronomy Picture of the Day; Science
KEYWORDS: apod; nasa

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For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.

1 posted on 07/16/2026 12:04:51 PM PDT by MtnClimber
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To: MtnClimber

2 posted on 07/16/2026 12:05:12 PM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: MtnClimber
A normal view of NGC 300


3 posted on 07/16/2026 12:05:43 PM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: 21stCenturion; 21twelve; 4everontheRight; A Navy Vet; A_perfect_lady; abb; AFB-XYZ; AFPhys; ...
Pinging the APOD list

🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔

4 posted on 07/16/2026 12:06:24 PM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: MtnClimber

Wow.


5 posted on 07/16/2026 12:11:59 PM PDT by No name given ( Anonymous is who you’ll know me as )
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To: MtnClimber

Whoa.


6 posted on 07/16/2026 12:12:04 PM PDT by No name given ( Anonymous is who you’ll know me as )
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To: MtnClimber

Very pretty. But more importantly, how is the Canadian Wildfire smoke effecting this? *SMIRK*

Today, it looks like it’s FOGGY - but it’s SMOKE! Ugh!


7 posted on 07/16/2026 1:21:29 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set.)
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To: MtnClimber

does kinda look like opal


8 posted on 07/16/2026 3:59:01 PM PDT by Bob434 (Time flies like an arrow, Fruit flies like a banana)
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