“Cosmic Sea Slug” Appears in Hubble’s 36th Birthday Image

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]NASA is celebrating Hubble's 36th birthday with this stunning new image of a shimmering region of star formation. A closeup of the Tripfid Nebula about 5,000 lighty years from Earth. Several massive stars which are out of the frame have shaped this region for at least 300,000 years. Their powerful winds continue to blow a gigantic bubble that pushes and compresses material and triggers new waves of star formation.

[00:00:32]This isn't the first time Hubble gazed at this scene. The telescope observed the tripffid in 1997 and now 29 years later it's revisiting the same spot. Why look at the same location again? because the nebula changes over time and Hubble is also now equipped with a more sensitive camera that was installed during servicing mission 4 in 2009.

[00:01:00]Hubble's view of the Tripfid Nebula focuses on a head and undulating body of a rustycoled cloud of gas and dust that resembles a sea slug gliding through the cosmos.

[00:01:14]The cosmic sea slug's left horn is part of Herbig hero 399, a jet of plasma periodically ejected over centuries by a young protoar.

[00:01:26]Watch the jet expand.

[00:01:28]We can see minor changes that allow researchers to measure the speed of outflows like this and determine how much energy the protoar is injecting into the region.

[00:01:40]These measurements will provide insights into how newly formed stars interact with their surroundings.

[00:01:47]To the immediate lower right [music] is evidence of a counterjet, jagged orange and red lines that run down the back of the sea slug's neck where a natural V appears in the brown dust.

[00:02:00]The darker, more triangular portion on the right hosts yet another young star at its tip. As we zoom in closer, we can see a faint red dot with a tiny [music] jet. The green arc above it may be evidence that a circumstellar disc is being eroded by the intense ultraviolet light from nearby massive stars. Since the area around this protoar is clearer, it may be almost finished forming.

[00:02:30]In Hubble's visible light observations, the clearest view is toward the top left where it's bluer. This is where strong ultraviolet light from massive stars outside this field of view stripped electrons from nearby gas, creating a glowing bubble. And with stellar winds clearing out surrounding dust at the top, bright yellow gas streams upward.

[00:02:57]This is an example of ultraviolet starlight. plowing into the dark brown dust, stripping and dismantling the gas and dust. Many ridges and slopes of dark brown material will remain for a few million years as the stars ultraviolet light slowly eats away at the gas. The densest areas are home to protoars which are obscured in visible light.

[00:03:24]The far right corner is [music] nearly pitch black. This is where the dust is the densest. The stars that appear here may not be part of this star forming region. [music] They might be closer to us in the foreground.

[00:03:38]Now scan the scene for bright orange orbs. These stars have fully [music] formed, clearing the space around them.

[00:03:47]Over millions of years, all of the gas and dust that make up the nebula will disappear, and only stars will remain.

[00:03:56]Because Hubble orbits above Earth's atmosphere, it can give us these clear views of the many wonders in our universe. For 36 years, the Hubble Space Telescope has transformed our view of the universe [music] and deepened our understanding of our place within it.

[00:04:13]From refining the estimated age of the cosmos to measuring how quickly it's expanding, Hubble has helped answer some of astronomy's biggest [music] questions.

[00:04:24]Happy birthday, Hubble. And here's to another exciting year of discovery ahead.