An unseen stellar nursery comes into view in this Herschel image. Some 700 newly-forming stars are estimated to be crowded into these colorful filaments of dust. The complex is part of a mysterious ring of stars called Gould's Belt. This image shows a dark cloud 1000 light-years away in the constellation Aquila, the Eagle. It covers an area 65 light-years across and is so shrouded in dust that no previous infrared satellite has been able to see into it. Now, thanks to Herschel's superior sensitivity at the longest wavelengths of infrared, astronomers have their first picture of the interior of this cloud. It was taken on October 24, 2009, using two of Herschel's instruments: the Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer and the Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver. The two bright regions are areas where large newborn stars are causing hydrogen gas to shine. (Credit: ESA and the SPIRE & PACS consortia, P. André (CEA Saclay) for the Gould’s Belt Key Programme Consortia.)

ScienceDaily (Dec. 18, 2009) — Herschel has peered inside an unseen stellar nursery and revealed surprising amounts of activity. Some 700 newly-forming stars are estimated to be crowded into filaments of dust stretching through the image. The image is the first new release of 'OSHI', ESA's Online Showcase of Herschel Images.

This image shows a dark cloud 1000 light-years away in the constellation Aquila, the Eagle. It covers an area 65 light-years across and is so shrouded in dust that no previous infrared satellite has been able to see into it. Now, thanks to Herschel's superior sensitivity at the longest wavelengths of the infrared, astronomers have their first picture of the interior of this cloud.

It was taken on 24 October using two of Herschel's instruments: the Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS) and the Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver (SPIRE). The two bright regions are areas where large newborn stars are causing hydrogen gas to shine.

The new OSHI website will become a library of Herschel's best images. Stunning views of the infrared sky will be made available as the mission progresses. Each will be captioned in a way to make them accessible to media representatives, educators and the public.

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