Friday, January 20, 2012

APOD 3.1

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This image shows the area known as Cygnus-X, the largest known "Star Factory" in the milky way. Taken by the Spitzer Space Telescope in 2009, Cygnus-X is roughly a million times as large as the sun and spans 600 million light years. Within a few million years Cygnus-X will disperse and leave behind several independant stars, which will begin to move throughout the galaxy. Seeing an are where stars are formed gives me a new appreciation for our own star, and an interest in learning about it's own origins.

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