Incredible image of a distant Cone Nebula dazzles astronomers

This amazing image of a nebula in deep space has stunned astronomers.

The image of the Cone Nebula was released by the European Southern Observatory (ESO).

The image was captured by ESO’s Very Large Telescope to mark its 60th anniversary.

The Cone Nebula is part of a larger complex 2,500 light-years away. It is known as NGC 2264 in the constellation Monoceros (the unicorn).

This particular nebula looks unlike some you may have seen. It does not glow with the colors of interstellar gas, but consists of thick dust that absorbs visible light.

It gives the Cone Nebula the appearance of a dark cosmic sentinel, silently monitoring the stars around it.

“Its columnar appearance is a perfect example of the shapes that can evolve in vast clouds of cold molecular gas and dust known to create new stars,” ESO said in a caption.

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