Baring The Spectacular Images Of Cat's Paw, Lobster Nebulae

The European Southern Observatory released images of the stunning Cat's Paw Nebula and Lobster Nebula. It used the Very Large Telescope (VLT) Survey Telescope in Chile and the 256-megapixel camera to capture these spectacular phenomena.

ESO stated that the Cat's Paw Nebula is one of the most active stellar nurseries in the night sky, nurturing thousands of young, hot stars whose visible light is unable to reach humans. It also stated that the Cat's Paw Nebula and the Lobster Nebula are made chiefly from hydrogen gas that is energized by the light of brilliant newborn stars.

European Southern Observatory - NGC 6334 and NGC 6357, known as the Cat’s Paw and Lobster Nebula #Stunning #Space https://t.co/4HbhSKY30n pic.twitter.com/sxZHGBairz

— Jon TtRx (@JonTtRx) February 2, 2017

The British scientist John Herschel first discovered both nebulae on consecutive nights in June 1837 during his three-year expedition to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. They both belong to a family of nebulae called "emission nebulae," in which this name came from the faint infrared glow emitted by hydrogen atoms that were embedded within the cosmic clouds that shape the nebula, according to New Atlas.

Its glow was described as youthful yet comprises huge stars that are around 10 times the mass of the Sun. The hydrogen atoms become energized and they glow because of the intense ultraviolet light.

The astronomers used the OmegaCam that can observe across a wide wavelength range and covers a field of view the equivalent of 256 million pixels. This camera could take images 16 times bigger than those taken by the Hubble Space Telescope's Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS).

Cat's Paw Nebula, with a code name "NGC 6334" also known as Bear Claw Nebula and Gum 64, is a type of an emission nebula. It is located in the constellation Scorpius. Meanwhile, the Lobster Nebula that has a code name "NGC 6357" is a type of diffuse nebula near the Cat's Paw Nebula.