Glowing Galactic Gases

Cosmic fireworks have often been recorded by photographs of outer space. The large masses of gases seem to glow and provide the pictures of galaxies with ethereal beauty are now being studied by scientists. The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array telescope is being used by a team of international researchers to check exactly how this breath taking phenomena occurs.

The large masses of hydrogen gas are known as Lyman-alpha Blobs or LABs. Found at huge cosmic distances, the ultraviolet light that they emit is responsible for their beautiful color displays. The LABs are very commonly found in the early stages of galaxy formation, usually at the center of it all.

These cool dust clouds shine essentially because of the radiation they emit. Observations from the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument mounted on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) are currently studying the LABs to study the formation of stars from the dust clouds. Needless to say, the process is lengthy and time consuming, but the results are visually spectacular.

This is one science project which will showcase some of the most beautiful phenomena seen in outer space. Even as researchers try to make sense of how the galaxy is formed, they are treated to a visual delight.