The Horsehead Nebula
One of the most recognisable dark nebulae in the sky — a column of cold, dusty gas in the Orion molecular cloud, about 1,500 light-years away, shaped by radiation into the silhouette of a horse's head. Catalogued as Barnard 33, it is seen against the soft red glow of the emission nebula IC 434 behind it, in the constellation Orion just south of the belt star Alnitak.
Imagery
Horsehead Nebula
Rising from a sea of dust and gas like a giant seahorse, the Horsehead nebula is one of the most photographed objects in the sky.
1999
JPL/NASA, NOAO, ESA and The Hubble Heritage Team, STScI/AURA · NASA media (public domain)
Highlights
- ›A dark dust column shaped like a horse's head, against IC 434
Examples & related concepts
Across the encyclopedia
Knowledge connections
- Associated withDark Nebula
- Associated withDark Nebula
- Associated withBarnard Catalogue of Dark Nebulae
- Associated withFlame Nebula
- Associated withOrion
- Associated withMolecular Clouds
Sources
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.
Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.