Friday, May 2, 2025

This image captures the central region of IC 2944, an emission nebula located in the constellation Centaurus, also known as the Running Chicken Nebula. The long focal length used in this capture allowed for a tight framing that highlights subtle structures in the core of the nebula, including the well-known Thackeray's Globules — small, dense, dark clouds of gas and dust that stand out dramatically against the glowing background of ionized hydrogen. These globules are potential sites of star formation, although no protostars have been detected inside them so far, which remains an intriguing topic for astronomers. They persist despite the intense ultraviolet radiation from nearby massive stars that illuminate the surrounding gas. This image was captured using narrowband Hα and OIII filters, and processed to enhance the interplay between the emission regions and the surrounding dust while preserving the delicate textures of the core.