APOD 3.4: Orion's Cradle

The constellation Orion is full of Nebulas and giant stellar nurseries. This picture is a giant Hydrogen gas cloud with nurseries lying on the edges. The view spans 13 degrees across the middle of Orion, and is about 1500 light-years away. It is taken with a Hydrogen Alpha filter, thus the rich red color of the cloud that would have been undetectable otherwise.
Within the cloud you can see the Orion nebula (right of center) and to the left of center there is the Flame Nebula, Horsehead Nebula, and the three stars of the Belt.