Social Media Goes Crazy Over This Keyhole in Space

By Abdullah Shahid ⏐ 3 years ago ⏐

2 min read

Captured by the Hubble telescope, this Keyhole is located in the constellation Orion which is located nearly 1350 light years away

An image taken from the Hubble Telescope has been making rounds on social media with people calling it the ‘keyhole of space’. Located 1350 light years away, the space keyhole is located in the constellation Orion and has been fascinating people all over the world.

According to the European Space Agency, what’s being captured in the image is actually a reflection nebula. This kind of nebula is only visible when they are illuminated from within itself.

The reflection nebula in this image is receiving its light from a newly born star named V380 Orionis. The light coming from V380 Orionis is lighting up the nebula which has a small keyhole shaped hollow part right in the center.

The hollow black part in the center is what acts as the keyhole between the well-lit reflection nebula. All of this is surely a beautiful and rare sight.

Hubble posted and released the image on its official Twitter account, “You would need a big key to unlock this peculiar picture of the week from Hubble” it wrote in the caption. Talking about the details of the Hubble Twitter account said that “This image shows NGC 1999, a reflection nebula in the constellation Orion. NGC 1999 is composed of detritus left over from the formation of a newborn star”.

While space geeks loved the view and were having detailed discussions about the image and the reflection nebula, many others were seen making quirky jokes about the space keyhole. People also tested their artistic capabilities by drawing animals and things on the image.