GALLERY: The heart and soul of our galaxy

By AG STAFF 9 February 2016
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In swirling clouds of hydrogen, helium and oxygen, nebulae form our galaxy’s “heart and soul”. All of these elements combine and attract each other to forge together and create stars. As well as being baby star factories, nebulae come in fantastic shapes and colours. ‘Pareidolia’ is a human tendency to see faces and other shapes where there are none – like what you do when cloud watching. These cosmic clouds also take on a number of recognisable shapes, including two of the best recognised, nicknamed the Heart and Soul nebulae. Anne Johnston spoke to astrophotographer Terry Hancock about his passion for these cosmic beauties.