ESO has today released a beautiful new image of the Cat's Paw Nebula, a complex region of star formation.

The Cat's Paw Nebula, or NGC 6334 lies 5,500 light years away towards the constellation Scorpius, and covers an area slightly larger than the disc of the full Moon. So named because the glowing gas clouds resemble a gigantic feline paw-print, the nebula is one of the most active stellar nurseries in our Galaxy.

The whole gas cloud is about 50 light-years across and appears red from glowing hydrogen gas characteristic of hot newborn stars. It is thought that the nebula may contain several tens of thousands of stars – including brilliant blue stars just a few million years old and up to ten times the mass of our Sun – but many are obscured from view, buried deep in the dust clouds. Dust lanes and dark pillars of gas are likely incubating the next generation of stars.

A red blister of gas swells in the lower right part of the image, and is thought either to be a star expelling large amounts of matter at high speed as it nears the end of its life or the remnant of a star that already has exploded.

The new image was created from images taken with the Wide Field Imager (WFI) instrument on the 2.2-metre MPG/ESO telescope at the La Silla Observatory in Chile by combining images taken through blue, green and red filters, as well as a special filter designed to let through the light of glowing hydrogen.

Our latest 132-page Astronomy Now special edition is an extravaganza of astronomy for the year ahead, with a complete 30-page guide to observing the planets, moon, meteor showers, two solar eclipses, and the deep sky in 2010.
 U.K. STORE
 E.U. STORE
 U.S. & WORLDWIDE STORE

Hubble Reborn
Hubble Reborn takes the reader on a journey through the Universe with spectacular full-colour pictures of galaxies, nebulae, planets and stars as seen through Hubble's eyes, along the way telling the dramatic story of the space telescope, including interviews with key scientists and astronauts.
 U.K. STORE
 E.U. STORE
 U.S. & WORLDWIDE STORE

3D Universe
Witness the most awesome sights of the Universe as they were meant to be seen in this 100-page extravaganza of planets, galaxies and star-scapes, all in 3D!
 U.K. STORE
 E.U. STORE
 U.S. & WORLDWIDE STORE

This special publication features the photography of British astro-imager Nik Szymanek and covers a range of photographic methods from basic to advanced. Beautiful pictures of the night sky can be obtained with a simple camera and tripod before tackling more difficult projects, such as guided astrophotography through the telescope and CCD imaging.
 U.K. STORE
 E.U. STORE
 U.S. & WORLDWIDE STORE

Explore the Universe with these new versions of the award-winning Starry Night Software. Available now from the Astronomy Now Store.
 U.K. STORE
 E.U. STORE
 U.S. & WORLDWIDE STORE

Astronomy Now is pleased to announce the publication of Exploring Mars. The very best images of Mars taken by orbiting spacecraft and NASA's Spirit and Opportunity rovers fill up the 98 glossy pages of this special edition!
 U.K. STORE
 E.U. STORE
 U.S. & WORLDWIDE STORE

This new poster features some of the best pictures from NASA's amazing Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity.
 U.K. STORE
 E.U. STORE
 U.S. & WORLDWIDE STORE