Each day we feature a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. Most of the stars in the cluster can be seen offset just above and to the right of the photograph's center. The redness of the surrounding emission nebula gas is caused by electrons recombining with hydrogen nuclei, while the dark regions are dust lanes that absorb much of the radiation that enters it. The dust absorbs so much light it allows astronomers to determine which stars are inside the nebula and which are in the foreground.
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