- M 20 (NGC 6514) Trifid Nebula
Elsewhere in my image galley I provide a combined image of M 20 and the nearby open cluster M 21. This view concentrates on M 20, the "Trifid Nebula", which is a large, complex nebula and embedded star cluster in the constellation Sagittarius. The cluster was discovered by Charles Messier in 1764. The English astronmer William Herschel was the first to recognize the nebula component. The popular name for the nebula (the Trifid Nebula) is attributed to William Hershell's son John who noted that the nebula was broken up into three (hence, "trifid") main parts by dark lanes of dust.
At a distance of 2660 LY, M 20 is considerably closer to us than the neighboring nebulas M 16 and M 17. The nebula is an active star forming region, with most of the stars hidden within the nebulosity. One notable double star, HD164492, shines brightly near the center of the object. M20 actually is composed of two separate nebulas— an emission nebula glowing bright "electric pink" and an adjacent reflection nebula shining pale blue from reflected starlight from neighboring blue-white stars. The dark dust lane between them has the designation B85.
This image of M 20 combines broad-band red, green and blue images with narrow-band Hα, Hβ and OIII images. The result is a hybrid image in which the "electric pink" color of the emission nebula is more intense and saturated than what you would get if the image were created just from the broad-band red, green, and blue components.
|
Return to SOCO Image Gallery