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Are nebulae within galaxies?
A nebula is a cloud of dust and gas, usually tens to hundreds of light years across. A galaxy is much larger — usually thousands to hundreds of thousands of light years across. Nebulae are one of the many things that galaxies are made of, along with stars, black holes, cosmic dust, dark matter and much more.
Can we see stars outside of our galaxy?
The answer is no – unless you count seeing the combined light of many billions of stars. From the Northern Hemisphere, the only galaxy outside our Milky Way that’s easily visible to the eye is the great galaxy in the constellation Andromeda, also known as M31. This is the edgewise view into our own Milky Way galaxy.
Does the Milky Way have nebula?
There are more than 1,000 known planetary nebulae in the Galaxy, but more might be overlooked because of obscuration in the Milky Way region. Composite picture of the Cat’s Eye Nebula (NGC 6543), combining three images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope.
Is nebula visible from Earth?
Most nebulae – clouds of interstellar gas and dust – are difficult if not impossible to see with the unaided eye or even binoculars. It’s visible to the unaided eye on a dark, moonless night.
What do galaxies and nebulae have in common?
A nebula is basically a cloud of gas and dust within our own galaxy, which we call the Milky Way due to its appearance as a bright band when seen from within. So although nebulae and galaxies are quite different astronomical objects, they are similar in that both look like fuzzy blobs to the casual stargazer.
How many nebulae are in our galaxy?
There are believed to be about 20,000 objects called planetary nebulae in the Milky Way Galaxy, each representing gas expelled relatively recently from a central star very late in its evolution. Because of the obscuration of dust in the Galaxy, only about 1,800 planetary nebulae have been cataloged.
Where are nebula found?
Nebulae exist in the space between the stars—also known as interstellar space. The closest known nebula to Earth is called the Helix Nebula. It is the remnant of a dying star—possibly one like the Sun. It is approximately 700 light-years away from Earth.
How do I find the Andromeda galaxy?
Most people find the galaxy by star-hopping from the constellation Cassiopeia the Queen, a very noticeable M- or W-shaped pattern on the sky’s dome. You can also find the Andromeda galaxy by star-hopping from the star Alpheratz in the Great Square of Pegasus. Both methods will lead you to the galaxy.
What kind of Nebula is too distant to be a star?
Before their nature was understood, galaxies (“spiral nebulae”) and star clusters too distant to be resolved as stars were also classified as nebulae, but no longer are. H II regions, large diffuse nebulae containing ionized hydrogen Planetary nebulae Supernova remnant (e.g., Crab Nebula) Dark nebula
How are the different types of nebulae formed?
There are a variety of formation mechanisms for the different types of nebulae. Some nebulae form from gas that is already in the interstellar medium while others are produced by stars.
How did Edwin Hubble determine the size of a Nebula?
Edwin Hubble discovered that most nebulae are associated by stars and illuminated by starlight. He also helped categorize nebulae based on the type of light spectra they produced. Most nebulae are of vast size; some are hundreds of light-years in diameter.
Is the Andromeda Nebula a spiral or spiral galaxy?
The Andromeda Galaxy, for instance, was once referred to as the Andromeda Nebula (and spiral galaxies in general as “spiral nebulae”) before the true nature of galaxies was confirmed in the early 20th century by Vesto Slipher, Edwin Hubble and others.