Dark Nebula Barnard 59

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This picture shows Barnard 59, part of a vast dark cloud of interstellar dust called the Pipe Nebula. This very detailed image of what is known as a dark nebula was captured by the Wide Field Imager on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at ESO's La Silla Observatory.

The dense molecular clump at the center of the Barnard 59 complex is the only region in the Pipe Nebula that has formed a small, stellar cluster. An analysis of a high-resolution near-IR dust extinction map revealed that the nuclear region in Barnard 59 is a massive, mostly quiescent clump of 18.9 million solar masses. This strange and complex dark nebula lies about 600–700 light-years away from Earth.

Barnard 59 is a prime example of a dark nebula. Originally, astronomers believed these were areas in space where there were no stars. But it was later discovered that dark nebulae actually consist of clouds of interstellar dust so thick it can block out the light from the stars beyond. Barnard 59 appears silhouetted against the rich star clouds close to the center of the Milky Way in the constellation of Ophiuchus (The Serpent Bearer).

The nebula is named after the American astronomer Edward Emerson Barnard who was the first to systematically record dark nebulae using long-exposure photography and one of those who recognized their dusty nature. Barnard cataloged a total of 370 dark nebulae all over the sky. A self-made man, he bought his first house with the prize money from discovering several comets. Barnard was an extraordinary observer with exceptional eyesight who made contributions in many fields of astronomy in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Image Credit: ESO

Image enhancement: Jean-Baptiste Faure