This cool space wallpaper reveals a very young star being born in the guts of the dark cloud LDN 43 — a massive blob of gas, dust, and ices, gathered 520 light-years from Earth in the constellation of Ophiuchus (The Serpent Bearer). The hidden newborn star in this image, revealed only by light reflected onto the plumes of the dark cloud, is named RNO 91. Stars are born from cosmic dust and gas, which floats freely in space until gravity forces it to bind together. The newborn star is what astronomers call a pre-main sequence star, meaning that it has not yet started burning hydrogen in its core. This image is based on data gathered by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope and was released Aug. 5, 2013.
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