What are galaxies and nebulae made of?

All nebulae observed in the Milky Way Galaxy are forms of interstellar matter—namely, the gas between the stars that is almost always accompanied by solid grains of cosmic dust.

How are nebulae made?

The Short Answer: A nebula is a giant cloud of dust and gas in space. Some nebulae (more than one nebula) come from the gas and dust thrown out by the explosion of a dying star, such as a supernova. Other nebulae are regions where new stars are beginning to form.

What makes nebula different?

Reflection Nebula – A reflection nebula differs from an emission nebula in does not emit radiation of its own. It is a cloud of dust and gas that reflects the light energy from a nearby star or group of stars. Reflection nebulae are frequently the sites of star formation.

What are galaxies made of?

Galaxies are sprawling systems of dust, gas, dark matter, and anywhere from a million to a trillion stars that are held together by gravity. Nearly all large galaxies are thought to also contain supermassive black holes at their centers.

What is the difference between nebula and supernova?

No, they are two entirely different things. A planetary nebula is born when a low mass star dies (low mass means less than about 8 times the mass of the Sun), while the supernova is the death of a massive star. The ring of material was once part of the star in the center, but now has been ejected.

Is nebula a galaxy?

A nebula is a cloud of dust and gas, usually tens to hundreds of light years across. A galaxy is much larger — usually thousands to hundreds of thousands of light years across. Nebulae are one of the many things that galaxies are made of, along with stars, black holes, cosmic dust, dark matter and much more.

Can we see nebula in other galaxies?

The answer is no – unless you count seeing the combined light of many billions of stars. From the Northern Hemisphere, the only galaxy outside our Milky Way that’s easily visible to the eye is the great galaxy in the constellation Andromeda, also known as M31.

Are nebulae bigger than galaxies?

Simply put, the main difference between galaxies and nebulae are an extreme difference in size, as well as their basic structure. A nebula is a cloud of dust and gas, usually tens to hundreds of light years across. A galaxy is much larger — usually thousands to hundreds of thousands of light years across.

Can we see Nebula in other galaxies?

Do all galaxies have black holes?

Black holes are a class of astronomical objects that have undergone gravitational collapse, leaving behind spheroidal regions of space from which nothing can escape, not even light. Observational evidence indicates that almost every large galaxy has a supermassive black hole at the galaxy’s center.

Is a galaxy the same as a solar system?

A galaxy is a system of solar systems and other stars. Galaxies, like solar systems, are held together by gravity. In galaxies, the solar systems are separated by vast sections of mostly empty space. The galaxy that contains the Earth and its solar system is called the Milky Way.

What are the different types of Nebula?

There are basically three types of nebulae, emission, reflective and dark. Emission nebulae are clouds of gas excited by the radiation, UV and X-rays, from a nearby source.

What is a stellar nebula?

A stellar nebula is a cloud of superheated gases and other elements formed by the explosive death of a massive star.