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FragleFameux t1_j5guulw wrote

Is it naturally this pink/purple? If so, do we know the composition that gives it? Or is it only due because of the heat of that zone?

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danielravennest t1_j5kg3vg wrote

The author's photography details has "color correction", so this isn't the original colors. This photo has no correction, just straight the way the camera took it.

The Rosette Nebula is part of a giant molecular cloud, about 5000 light years away. Hot young stars are exciting the molecules in the cloud, causing them to emit light, somewhat like neon lights in stores have the gas excited by electricity.

Red is typically from ionized hydrogen, the most common element in the Universe. The middle part of this hydrogen discharge tube shows the natural glowing color. Other colors come from other elements.

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