Fact Sheet
Bad Neighbor
Strong winds from nearby young stars are eroding a cloud of gas and dust in the nebula IC 1396. The winds, which are moving from lower left to upper right, squeeze the cloud, helping it give birth to new stars. At the same time, they blow away much of the raw material for stars, limiting the number of stars that can be born. This infrared image, from Spitzer Space Telescope, shows the glow of the gas and dust, which appear dark to the naked eye. [NASA/JPL/W.Reach (SSC/Caltech)]
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