Astronomers using the ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) in northern Chile have discovered a faint cometary globule nebula located 1,300 light-years from Earth in the constellation Puppis.
The telescope also captured a new image of the cometary globule, which is known as CG4 or God’s Hand. That image depicts the head of CG4, which has a diameter of 1.5 light-years and is similar in appearance to the head of a massive, menacing beast, according to CNET.
While it appears very bright in the image, CG4 is actually a very faint nebula that is difficult for citizen astronomers to detect, the website added. The tail of the globule, which cannot be seen in the photo, is roughly eight light-years long – somewhat tiny, by astronomical standards.
It’s exact nature “remains a mystery,” CNET noted. Despite its name, and its resemblance to a comet, the two thing are in no way related. Rather, cometary globules are a type of cold, dense and compact nebula that has an internal mass between 2 and 100 times the mass of our sun.
The globules often appear to be dark patched in the sky and emanate no light, which is one of the reasons they are so difficult to detect, and even though they are among the coldest objects known to exist in the universe, forming star(s) on the inside cause their cores to create warmth.
If it’s not a comet, what is it?
In a statement, the ESO explains that the head of CG4 is comprised of a thick cloud of dust and gas which is only visible because of the light given off by nearby stars. However, that radiation is actually slowly destroying its head, eroding away the particles that cause light to scatter.
In spite of this, however, the dusty cloud of CG4 still contains enough gas to produce multiple Sun-sized stars – and, in fact, the globule is said to be currently in the process of producing new stars, possibly as the result of radiation from the nearby Gum Nebula reaching CG4.
“Why CG4 and other cometary globules have their distinct form is still a matter of debate among astronomers and two theories have developed,” the ESO said. “Cometary globules, and therefore also CG4, could originally have been spherical nebulae, which were disrupted and acquired their new, unusual form because of the effects of a nearby supernova explosion.”
According to other scientists, cometary globules may have been shaped by stellar winds and ionizing radiation from a hot, massive type of star known as OB stars. The resulting effects may be responsible the globules, as well as the unusual formations known as elephant trunks.
“To find out more, astronomers need to find out the mass, density, temperature, and velocities of the material in the globules,” the ESO explained. “These can be determined by the measurements of molecular spectral lines which are most easily accessible at millimeter wavelengths.”
The image is the result of the ESO’s Cosmic Gems project, which is a program designed to capture images of unusual, interesting, or aesthetically pleasing astronomical objects using the observatory’s telescopes for educational and public outreach purposes.
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