Plants and Flowers
Valentine Rose
by CritterKeeper on Feb.12, 2010, under Plants and Flowers
Credit: NASA/JPL/Caltech/Harvard-Smithsonian CfA
Bright, young stars form a rosebud-shaped nebula in this image from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope known as NGC 7129. In this Valentine’s Day image, thousands of stars are being formed in this dense cloud of gas and dust. Most stars, including our Sun, are thought to have formed in such clouds. Spitzer’s infrared camera allows us to peer inside this cloud.
Flower of Orion
by CritterKeeper on Feb.11, 2010, under Plants and Flowers
Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)
Explore the folds and petals of the Orion Nebula in this dramatic new image from ESO’s VISTA survey telescope. VISTA’s infrared vision allows to deeply into this well-known nebula showing young active stars and regions of warm gas. As we peer through a telescope at the Orion Nebula, we see only a small part of the light streaming to us. The infrared sensors on NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and VISTA show a much larger complex of gas and dust, all material for new stars to form.
Intense Flames
by CritterKeeper on Jan.15, 2010, under Plants and Flowers
Credit: ESO/J. Emerson/VISTA.
What looks like a flame, or a cosmic jellyfish, is seen shooting out of the rich star–forming region of the Flame Nebula. Also known as NGC 2024, the Flame Nebula shows a bright group of stars lighting up the region with the core completely hidden behind a pillar of dust. Intense ultraviolet light and strong winds come from bright, new stars deep in the heart of the Flame Nebula. The ultraviolet light excites atoms inside the nebula causing it to glow. Usually we see great images like this from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. This image comes to us from the giant, 4.1-meter VISTA telescope, the world’s largest survey telescope.
Spacey Tree
by CritterKeeper on Dec.14, 2009, under Plants and Flowers
Credit: NASA/JPL–Caltech/P.S. Teixeira (Center for Astrophysics)
Whether you see a Christmas tree or snowflake, this nebula represents winter. Trace the dim triangular pattern of the tree in the wisps of green and yellow. Or follow the pattern of a snowflake in the center group of stars in this Spitzer Space Telescope image of the Christmas Tree Nebula.
Wonders in Orion
by CritterKeeper on Oct.09, 2009, under Plants and Flowers
Credit: NASA, ESA, M. Robberto (Space Telescope Science Institute/ESA) and the Hubble Space Telescope Orion Treasury Project Team
The Great Nebula in Orion, shown in this image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, is a place of wonder. The nebula, also known as M42, shows flowers in gas, giant pillars of dust and massive stars. Strong winds from massive stars found in the center of the nebula carved out a great cavity in the nebula.
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Welcome to Starry Critters!
Thanks for dropping by! This site combines incredible imagery from the Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer Space Telescope and other great observatories with the imagination of children. Explore and share the patterns you see in the nebula, galaxies and star clusters.Note to Parents and Educators:
The main focus of the site are the images of space. We believe the explanations are best suited for parents, educators and upper grade students. Parents may find it helpful to view the site with their children and explore the universe together using the explanatory text as a guide. Background text is provided to let you know the real story behind the image. Links, very useful for parents and teachers, include definitions and will take you to other sites for even more detail.
Zoom in and out and pan around the images to find your own patterns in the stars. Be creative and think outside the box.Tell us your stories and let us know what you find! Feel free to join the discussion by leaving comments, and stay updated by subscribing to the RSS feed.
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