NGC 6520 and Barnard 86

About This Photograph

In this image, we see striking contrasts. We are looking roughly toward the center of our galaxy, in the constellation of Sagittarius. Forming the background is a vast cloud of countless stars, ancient denizens of the Milky Way. On the left is a young star cluster, NGC 6520. The hot, blue stars of the cluster tip us off to its relative youth. To the right is Barnard 86, a dark nebula. This cloud of relatively dense gas and dust, apparently a remnant of the formation of NGC 6520, blocks the light from the star cloud beyond.