Protostar HH 34 in Orion
This image is an enlargement of a three-colour composite of the young object Herbig-Haro 34 (HH-34), now in the protostar stage of evolution. It is based on CCD frames obtained with the FORS2 instrument in imaging mode, on November 2 and 6, 1999. This object has a remarkable, very complicated appearance that includes two opposite jets that ram into the surrounding interstellar matter. This structure is produced by a machine-gun-like blast of "bullets" of dense gas ejected from the star at high velocities (approaching 250 km/sec). This seems to indicate that the star experiences episodic "outbursts" when large chunks of material fall onto it from a surrounding disk. HH-34 is located at a distance of approx. 1,500 light-years, near the famous Orion Nebula, one of the most productive star birth regions. Note also the enigmatic "waterfall" to the upper left, a feature that is still unexplained.
Credit:
ESO
About the Image
| Id: | eso9948c |
| Type: | Observation |
| Release date: | 17 November 1999 |
| Related releases: | eso9948 |
| Size: | 802 x 895 px |
About the Object
| Name: | HH 34 |
| Type: | • Milky Way : Star : Evolutionary Stage : Protostar • X - Nebulae |
| Distance: | 1500 light years |
Coordinates
| Position (RA): | 5h 35m 30.98s |
| Position (Dec): | -6° 28' 37.86" |
| Field of view: | 2.66 x 2.97 arcminutes |
| Orientation: | North is 0.9° right of vertical |
Colours & filters
| Band | Wavelength | Telescope |
| Optical B |
429 nm | Very Large Telescope FORS2 |
| Optical H-alpha |
429 nm | Very Large Telescope FORS2 |
| Optical Sii |
673 nm | Very Large Telescope FORS2 |
Images
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