B68, the Black Cloud Space Wallpaper

This photograph shows an unusual sky field in the Milky Way band. It is centred on one of the classical, dark globules, known as Barnard 68 (B68). (Image credit: ESO)

This space wallpaper shows an unusual sky field in the Milky Way band. It is centred on one of the classical, dark globules, known as Barnard 68 (B68) after the American astronomer, Edward E. Barnard (1857 - 1923), who included it in a list of such objects, published in 1919. It appears as a compact, opaque and rather sharply defined object against a rich, background star field. Even on this image that registers many faint stars in the area, not a single foreground star is observed.

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