Astronomy Picture of the Day ·

LDN 43: The Cosmic Bat Nebula

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for October 27, 2024 is “LDN 43: The Cosmic Bat Nebula,” an image. The picture is copyrighted by its creator (Credit & Copyright: Mark Hanson and Mike Selby ; Text: Michelle Thaller ( NASA ‘s GSFC )). The original explanation runs about 129 words.

A starfield is shown with a large brown dust nebula in the center. The nebula appears, to some, to be shaped like a bat. One of the stars in the dust nebula even appears to be the eye of the bat. Please see the explanation for more detailed
Credit & Copyright: Mark Hanson and Mike Selby ; Text: Michelle Thaller ( NASA ‘s GSFC ) Copyrighted Shown from science.nasa.gov. Not hosted by OpenOrbit.

From the explanation

“What is the most spook-tacular nebula in the galaxy? One contender is LDN 43, which bears an astonishing resemblance to a vast cosmic bat flying amongst the stars on a dark Halloween night.”

— APOD editors, October 27, 2024

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date
October 27, 2024
Type
Image
Credit
Credit & Copyright: Mark Hanson and Mike Selby ; Text: Michelle Thaller ( NASA ‘s GSFC )
Copyright
Copyrighted by the credited creator. Ask the copyright holder before reusing it.
Explanation length
About 129 words

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Topics in this entry

NebulaeGalaxies

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: October 27 in other years

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Source

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.