Portal:Astronomy/Picture/Week 30 2006

Bearing a remarkable resemblance to a horse's head, the Horsehead Nebula is one of the best known dark nebulae, although it is very difficult to see except in quite large telescopes. The emission nebula against which it is silhouetted is part of a giant cloud of hydrogen gas, which also includes the Orion Nebula, the Flaming Tree Nebula and Barnard's Loop.