European Southern Observatory's VISTA telescope took an image of the Trifid Nebula looking phantasmal, according to a press release by ESO.
Using infrared light, the nebula is see-through and objects typically hidden from view are easily seen, like two newly discovered Cepheid variable stars. (Cepheid variables are unstable stars that pulsate with variable temperature and diameter before fading out). These two stars are the first Cepheid variable stars that have been seen in the center of the Milky Way, according to ESO.
The VISTA telescope at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile is surveying the Milky Way with infrared light, scouting previously unseen objects. The VVV survey (short for VISTA Variables in the Via Lactea) is checking the same spots repeatedly, looking for changes in brightness.
The database created by VVV has brought to life the new image of the Messier 20 region (also known as the Trifid Nebula, named for the three dark lines produced when seen through a telescope).
The Trifid Nebula, as seen with visible light, looks pink (from ionized hydrogen) and blue (from hot, young stars), according to ESO. Through infrared light, the nebula looks ghostly and translucent. The three dark lanes are barely visible.
