Space Tornado (IMAGE)

Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

Space Tornado

Caption

IRAC not only probes what is known -- it also has uncovered some mysterious objects like this so-called "tornado" nebula. Because the camera is sensitive to light emitted from shocked molecular hydrogen (seen here in green), astronomers think that this strange beast is the result of an outflowing jet of material from a young star that has generated shock waves in surrounding gas and dust.

Credit

NASA / JPL-Caltech / J. Bally (University of Colorado)

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