APOD Entry: Dusty NGC 1333

NGC 1333 is a reflection nebula in the constellation Perseus. The blue seen in the picture is due from emissions of the main central star. There are many other stars being formed but they are obscured by the dust surrounding the nebula. The stars themselves are about 1 million years old, relatively young in cosmic standards. Infrared light can penetrate the dust clouds and see the stars and there emissions. The turbulent conditions are thought to be similar to the environment in which our own sun was formed.
The nebula is 9' in size and is only 1000 light years away. It is part of the Perseus OB2 molecular cloud complex, one of the nearest star forming regions in the Milky Way.