NGC 6188 and NGC 6164
From NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the
Day
Fantastic shapes lurk
in clouds of glowing gas in NGC 6188, about 4,000 light-years away. The emission
nebula is found near the edge of a large molecular cloud unseen at
visible wavelengths, in the southern constellation Ara.
Massive, young stars of the embedded Ara OB1
association were formed in that region only a few million years ago, sculpting the dark
shapes and powering the nebular glow with stellar winds and intense ultraviolet
radiation.
The recent star formation itself
was likely triggered by winds and supernova explosions, from previous
generations of massive stars, that swept up and compressed the molecular gas.
Joining NGC 6188 on this
cosmic canvas is rare emission nebula NGC 6164, also created by
one of the region's massive O-type stars. Similar in appearance to many planetary nebulae, NGC
6164's striking, symmetric gaseous shroud and faint halo surround its bright
central star near the bottom edge.
The impressively wide field of
view spans over 3 degrees (six full Moons), corresponding to over 200
light years at the estimated distance of NGC 6188. Narrowband
image data has been included in the natural looking color
composite, adding to deep red emission from hydrogen and sulfur atoms and
the blue-green light of oxygen atoms.
