{"copyright":"George Chatzifrantzis","date":"2025-12-10","explanation":"Sculpted by stellar winds and radiation, this dusty interstellar molecular cloud has by chance has assumed an immediately recognizable shape. Fittingly known as The Hor sehead Nebula, it lies some 1,500 light-years distant, embedded in the vast Orio n cloud complex. About five light-years \"tall,\" the dark cloud is cataloged as Barnard 33, first identified on a photographic plate taken in the late 19th cen tury. B33 is visible primarily because its obscuring dust is silhouetted agains t the glow of emission nebula IC 434. Hubble space telescope images from the ea rly 21st century find young stars forming within B33. Of course, the magnificent interstellar cloud will slowly shift its apparent shape over the next few milli on years. But for now the Horsehead Nebula is a rewarding though difficult objec t to view with small telescopes from planet Earth.","hdurl":"https:\/\/apod.nasa .gov\/apod\/image\/2512\/IC434NM.jpg","media_type":"image","service_version":"v1 ","title":"The Horsehead Nebula","url":"https:\/\/apod.nasa.gov\/apod\/image\/25 12\/IC434NM900.jpg"}
