This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image captures the Orion Nebula (Messier 42, M42), the nearest star-forming region to Earth, located about 1,500 light-years away. A captivating new image captured by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope offers an extraordinary look into the Orion Nebula, the nearest massive star-forming region to Earth. Located just 1,500 light-years away, this nebula is visible to the naked eye below the three stars forming Orion's "belt." The region is home to hundreds of newborn stars, including two protostars featured in the image: HOPS 150 and HOPS 153. Named after the Herschel Orion Protostar Survey, conducted with ESA’s Herschel Space Observatory, the protostars HOPS 150 and HOPS 153 provide key insights into the early stages of star formation. HOPS 150, visible in the upper-right corner of the image, is a binary star system, with two young stars orbiting one another. These protostars are surrounded by small dusty disks, where material from th...
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