With the DVD release of the final Harry Potter film last Friday, I thought it was only right to feature this incredibly appropriate piece of space this week.
This is The Wizard Nebula! This nebula surrounds developing star cluster NGC 7380, and is only 8,000 light years away (around the block considering the distances of most other nebulae). Inside the 100-light-year-length of this region you will find gravitational forces strong enough to form stars and stellar winds and radiations powerful enough to create and dissolve towers of gas.
Awesome space news of the week:
Keck Observatory locates two clouds of pristine gas from the beginning of time. Here they are:
Strange, right? You should definitely follow the above link to Universe Today's full post. Fascinating stuff.
And lastly, I came across this post on tumblr and could not stop laughing. Some science-factual humor:
