Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                 2026 May 3
     [2]A field of stars on the left is mirred by a wall of opaque brown
    dust on the right. Jutting out from the wall is a long pillar with a
    rounded end that has a prominent light- colored jet emanating toward
    the upper left. The stellar background toward the upper left is dark
       blue. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

                           Trifid Pillars and Jets
    Image Credit: [3]NASA, [4]ESA, [5]STScI; Processing: [6]J. DePasquale
                                 ([7]STScI)

   Explanation: Dust pillars are like [8]interstellar mountains. They
   survive because they are more dense than their surroundings, but they
   are slowly being [9]eroded away by a hostile environment. Visible in
   the [10]featured picture by the [11]Hubble Space Telescope is the end
   of a huge gas and dust pillar in the [12]Trifid Nebula (M20),
   punctuated by a smaller pillar pointing up and an unusual [13]jet
   pointing to the upper left. Many of the bright dots are [14]newly
   formed stars. A star near the small pillar's end is slowly being
   stripped of its [15]accreting gas by radiation from a tremendously
   brighter [16]star situated off the top of the image. The [17]jet
   extends nearly a [18]light-year and would not be visible without
   external illumination. As gas and [19]dust evaporate from the pillars,
   the [20]hidden stellar source of this [21]jet will likely be uncovered,
   possibly over the next 20,000 years.

               Explore the Universe: [22]Random APOD Generator
                      Tomorrow's picture: inside Earth
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    Authors & editors: [34]Robert Nemiroff ([35]MTU) & [36]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([37]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [38]Specific rights apply.
            [39]NASA Web Privacy, [40]Accessibility, [41]Notices;
                A service of: [42]ASD at [43]NASA / [44]GSFC,
                         [45]NASA Science Activation
                           & [46]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2605/TrifidPillar_Hubble_4074.jpg
   3. https://www.nasa.gov/
   4. https://www.esa.int/
   5. https://www.stsci.edu/
   6. https://jdepasquale.com/
   7. https://www.stsci.edu/
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap241022.html
   9. https://youtu.be/ChEHQUMEkXw?t=20
  10. https://science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/nasas-hubble-dazzles-with-young-stars-in-trifid-nebula/
  11. https://science.nasa.gov/mission/hubble/
  12. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trifid_Nebula
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap251205.html
  14. https://science.nasa.gov/mission/hubble/science/science-highlights/exploring-the-birth-of-stars/
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap240507.html
  16. https://science.nasa.gov/universe/stars/
  17. https://youtu.be/QFwfV2A1ZgY
  18. https://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/cosmic_distance.html
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap030706.html
  20. https://i.pinimg.com/564x/ce/fb/c2/cefbc2fb4ca5022aa7f0d5b77d426c50.jpg
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250528.html
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/random_apod.html
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260502.html
  24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  27. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  29. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  31. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  32. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=260503
  33. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260504.html
  34. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  35. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  36. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  37. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  38. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  39. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  40. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  41. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  42. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  43. https://www.nasa.gov/
  44. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  45. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  46. http://www.mtu.edu/