APOD: 2026 July 22 – The Corona Australis Cloud and the Chandelier Cluster
Discover the cosmos!
Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
2026 July 22
The Corona Australis Molecular Cloud and the Chandelier Cluster
Image Credit:
DES/DOE/FNAL/DECam/CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA
Image Processing:
T.A. Rector (UAA/NOIRLab), R. Colombari & M. Zamani (NOIRLab)
Text:
Keighley Rockcliffe
(NASA
GSFC,
UMBC CSST,
CRESST II)
Explanation:
The Southern Crown (Corona Australis) dazzles with young and ancient celestial jewels.
The Corona Australis Cloud
is a collage of
reflection and emission nebulae
on the left of
today’s image.
At 430 light years away, this cloud is one of the closest
star-forming regions
to Earth. It contains gas cool enough (-260 Celsius or -440 Fahrenheit) to collapse into
protostars.
Recently formed stars paint blue hues across the cloud as their light reflects off surrounding material. The waltz of the R Coronae Australis
binary system
stirs up the nebula
NGC 6729.
The younger of the pair
ionizes
nearby gas with its ultraviolet light, causing it to glow.
The Chandelier Cluster
(NGC 6723) dangles from the top right, but is actually tens of thousands
of light years farther away than its apparent star-forming neighbor.
While NGC 6723 experienced multiple periods of star formation creating
slightly younger
stars, the chandelier twinkles with stars almost as old as the universe.
Tomorrow’s picture: a friendly neighborhood galaxy
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Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
NASA Official: Amber Straughn
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