Hubble has captured a "cosmic slug" in the Triple Nebula

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has captured a new image of the Trifid Nebula, where star formation is actively taking place. The object is located approximately 5,000 light-years from Earth.

This was reported by the NASA Observatory.

The Trifid Nebula, also known as Messier 20 or M20, appears in the image as a rust-colored cloud of gas and dust resembling a sea slug “slithering” through space. The photo captures the “head” and the undulating “body” of this structure.

The left “horn” of the formation is associated with the Herbig–Haro object 399—a jet of plasma periodically ejected by a young protostar located in the “head” of the nebula.

These outbursts allow scientists to measure the speed of the flows and estimate how much energy the protostar transfers to its surroundings. Such observations help us better understand the processes of star formation.

According to the researchers’ estimates, several massive stars that are not visible in the image have been shaping this region for at least 300,000 years. Their powerful stellar winds create a massive “bubble” that compresses gas and dust, triggering new waves of star formation.

This region has been observed by the Hubble Space Telescope before—most recently in 1997. The new image allows for a comparison of changes in the nebula over the decades.