Wide, mottled clouds of dark dust and faint brownish-red glow fill the frame, threaded with small, brighter blue reflection patches around young stars near the center. The nebulosity looks lumpy and uneven, with wisps and filaments extending outward into a busy background of sharp, pinpoint stars scattered across the field.

John Vermette, taken from Starfront Observatory, Texas

Lying 1,000 light-years away, NGC 1333 is the most active star-forming region in the Perseus molecular complex, producing newborn stars that carve cavities in the surrounding dust. The imager collected 8 hours of exposure with a one-shot color camera and a 4-inch f/5 refractor.