Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day presents a haunting view of cosmic dust clouds drifting through the royal constellation Cepheus. Located approximately 1,200 light-years away at the edge of the Cepheus Flare molecular cloud complex, these structures appear as spooky shapes visible only in dimly reflected starlight above the plane of the Milky Way.
A prominent feature in the lower right of the image is vdB 141, also known as Sh2-136 or the Ghost Nebula. Spanning over two light-years across and shining brighter than surrounding apparitions, this nebula contains reddish signs of dense cores collapsing during the early stages of star formation.
Just left of center, the Iris Nebula stands out against the darkness with an eerie hue. This color results from interstellar dust reflecting bluish light emitted by hot young stars within NGC 7023. The broad telescopic frame captures these fertile interstellar dust fields stretching across a sky area nearly six times the width of the full moon.
Sources: NASA Breaking News.