Nebula N44 contains glowing hydrogen gas, dark lanes of dust, massive stars, and many populations of stars of different ages!
The dark, starry gap seen in this image is known as a “superbubble” that stretches across 250 light-years.
Its presence is something of a cosmic mystery.
One potential explanation is that the expanding shells of old supernova explosions sculpted the cosmic cavern.
Nebula N44 is located about 170,000 light-years away from Earth.
Image credits: NASA, ESA, V.
Ksoll and D.
Gouliermis (Universität Heidelberg), et al.; Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America) “Thousand Yard Stare” by Joel Goodman [ASCAP] via Medley Lane Music [ASCAP] and Universal Production Music