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News Release
Astronomers Take Unusual
Ultraviolet Image of Orion
This is a an ultraviolet image of the
constellation Orion taken with the Midcourse Space Experiment
satellite, built by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.
The image may provide insights into a bright region, called M42,
where new stars are forming.
The Orion image is particularly significant because it shows
a wide-angle ultraviolet view of dust surrounding M42, located
about 1,500 light years from Earth. The hotter an object is the
more ultraviolet light it emits. Because hot stars are typically
younger, studying the ultraviolet sky teaches scientists more
about the properties in regions where stars are born. But the
Earth's atmosphere filters out ultraviolet light, so space-borne
instruments must be used to make observations in the ultraviolet
spectrum.
Return to Astronomers Take Unusual
Ultraviolet Image of Orion
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