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Sharpless 126 (Sh2-126) is the designation of a large emission nebula in Lacerta, which appears in this image as red glow in the lower half of the image The source of its ionisation is the intense ultraviolet radiation from the star 10 Lacertae, a blue main sequence star.
The blue-greenish nebulae on top and below Sh2-126 are extended molecular clouds. The one in the centre of the image is labeled LBN 437. Its densest part is associated with the bright young stars located in it.
This region, with its faint nebular filaments, is part of Lacerta OB1, a giant star-forming region about 1200 light-years from Earth.
Milky Way Vista - Cygnus to Cassiopeia, zoom lens photograph.
Sh2-126 in Lacerta, Wright-Newtonian CCD-image.
Exposure Data
