Like fireworks that linger for millennia, nebulae are some of the most photogenic objects in the universe. These vast clouds of dust and gas represent both the birth and death of stars, and their swirling forms lend themselves well to creative names based on whatever shapes observers happen to see in them. New Atlas has collected some of the most breathtaking nebula images ever taken.
Originally, the term "nebula" referred to any murky, diffuse celestial object, up to and including galaxies like Andromeda. But as our technology improved so did our understanding of nebulae, bringing their true nature into sharper focus.
![Commonly known as the Pillars of Creation, this active star-forming region is one small part of the Eagle Nebula, located 7,000 light-years away. This image, recently taken by Hubble, is one of the most detailed pictures of the formation – blue is oxygen, red is sulfur and green is both nitrogen and hydrogen.](https://assets.newatlas.com/dims4/default/8a75be5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1035x1080+0+0/resize/920x960!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnewatlas-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Farchive%2Fnebula-gallery-2.jpg)
Nebulae fall into a few categories. H II regions are huge clouds of ionized hydrogen, which over time have begun to collapse in on themselves in pockets to form new stars. One of the most famous of these stellar nurseries is the Eagle Nebula, home to the gorgeous Pillars of Creation.
![The Crab Nebula was created in a supernova that was so bright it was visible by the naked eye from Earth in the year 1054. It’s about 10 light-years wide and has a pulsar at its core, which crams the mass of the Sun into a neutron star just 30 km (19 mi) wide.NASA, ESA, J. Hester, A. Loll (ASU)](https://assets.newatlas.com/dims4/default/2816840/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1080x1080+0+0/resize/960x960!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnewatlas-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Farchive%2Fnebula-gallery-4.jpg)
But nebulae bookend the life of a star. Supernova remnants and planetary nebulae are the clouds of material ejected in the death throes of stars, and are relatively short-lived in the grand scheme of things. They fade away after just tens of thousands of years, having spread their heavier elements through the cosmos. One of the most well-known of these is the Crab Nebula, still visible almost 1,000 years after a supernova lit up the night sky in the year 1054.
Hit the gallery for a trip through our galaxy and beyond as we marvel at some of the most mesmerizing nebula ever photographed.