Reflected glory
Wednesday, February 16, 2011 - 10:30
in Astronomy & Space
(PhysOrg.com) -- The nebula Messier 78 takes centre stage in this image taken with the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope at the La Silla Observatory in Chile, while the stars powering the bright display take a backseat. The brilliant starlight ricochets off dust particles in the nebula, illuminating it with scattered blue light. Igor Chekalin was the overall winner of ESOs Hidden Treasures 2010 astrophotography competition with his image of this stunning object.