Stars Adorn Orion's Sword

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About the Object

Color Mapping

Band	Wavelength	Telescope
Infrared	3.6 µm	Spitzer IRAC
Infrared	4.5 µm	Spitzer IRAC
Infrared	8.0 µm	Spitzer IRAC
Infrared	24.0 µm	Spitzer MIPS

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Astrometrics

Position (J2000): RA = 5^h 35^m 16.3^s; Dec = -6° 0' 51.2"
Field of View: 0.8 x 1.4 degrees
Orientation: North is up
Constellation: Orion

Recent News

05.26.11

This image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows what lies near the sword of the constellation Orion -- an active stellar nursery containing thousands of young stars and developing protostars. Many will turn out like our sun. Some are even more massive. These massive stars light up the Orion nebula, which is seen here as the bright region near the center of the image.

To the north of the Orion nebula is a dark filamentary cloud of cold dust and gas, over 5 light-years in length, containing ruby red protostars that jewel the hilt of Orion's sword. These are the newest generation of stars in this stellar nursery, and include the protostar HOPS 68, where Spitzer spotted tiny green crystals in a surrounding cloud of gas.

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	News Release Spitzer Sees Crystal 'Rain' in Outer Clouds of Infant Star ssc2011-06
	Image Stars Adorn Orion's Sword ssc2011-06a
	Image Finding Forsterite Around a Developing Star ssc2011-06b
	Image Cosmic Fountain of Crystal Rain ssc2011-06c

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