The universe is as vast as it is mysterious. It hides within itself uncountable secrets waiting to be discovered. Through the scary darkness shines septillion stars, adding to the mystery and beauty of universe. Take a look at these breathtaking images captured by NASA.

by TOI Lifestyle Desk

Also known as Swan nebula, this is one of the latest star forming regions in the Milky Way galaxy. It is located 5,500 years from earth in the constellation Sagittarius. It was discovered in 1745 by Swiss astronomer Jean-Philippe Loys de Chéseaux.

This spiral galaxy is located in the Canes Venatici constellation, about 27 million light years away. The galaxy has discontinuous arms that appear to be winding around its yellow core. The radiation in the arms is because of the recently formed blue stars.

This star birth factory is located 6,400 light years away from earth in the Orion constellation and is also known as NGC 2174 and Sharpless Sh2-252.This image was released by Hubble in 1990. Here stars are being formed at a rapid rate.

​

It is a planetary Nebula in the Delphinus constellation, dolphin. This image was taken by the Hubble Telescope. In the center is a white dwarf star surrounded by two ellipsoidal shells and a blue spherical outer halo.

This image has been taken with Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument), this hourglass figure marks the formation of a new star. The protostar is a relatively young object of about 10,000 years. It is still surrounded by its parent molecular cloud.

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope took this picture. In this landscape new stars are constantly forming within dense clouds of dust and gas. It was imaged in 1995.

This nebula consists of a bright ring, measuring 12 trillion miles across. This nebula is densely packed with stars in a way that it resembles a diamond necklace. The stars glow brightly due to the absorption of ultraviolet light from central stars.

A group of interacting galaxies came to be known as Arp 273. Due to the gravitational tidal pull of the galaxy below, the disc of the larger spiral galaxy is shaped like a rose. These stars grow brightly in ultraviolet light.

This expanding cloud of gas surrounds a dying star. This nebula is nearly half a light year in diameter and is 2000 light years away from earth. This image shows two stars, near the center, a bright one and a fainter one.