APOD: 2026 July 1 – The Cotton Candy Clouds of Rho Ophiuchi

Discover the cosmos!
Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2026 July 1


A handful of different types of clouds splatter across the image, with bright stars embedded within. Dust blocks some parts of the clouds. Many small stars cover the background, with a cluster of them sitting in the bottom right beneath all the clouds.

The Cotton Candy Clouds of Rho Ophiuchi
Image Credit & Copyright:
Ángel Molina

Text:
Keighley Rockcliffe
(NASA
GSFC,
UMBC CSST,
CRESST II)

Explanation:
Although they look like cotton candy, you cannot eat these clouds! Taken in
Cádiz, Spain,
today’s image
features
the Rho Ophiuchi complex,
a rich tapestry of young and old astronomical phenomena. This colorful cloud complex is a
nearby star-forming region containing hundreds of
young stellar objects,
including
protostars and
T Tauri stars.
Light from
the triple star system
at its center
reflects
off of small dust grains to create the blue
reflection nebula.
Ultraviolet
light from hot stars
ionizes
the surrounding hydrogen gas, creating the red
emission nebula.
Antares,
a red supergiant
big enough to engulf the Solar System’s
asteroid belt,
lights up the yellow region. Dark
interstellar dust
blocks some of the complex’s color. Recent
JWST observations
exhibit shadows cast by hidden
circumstellar disks,
the beginning stages of planet formation.
Messier 4,
a globular cluster almost as old as the universe, sits in the bottom right and witnesses yet
another chaotic burst of youth in the Milky Way.

Tomorrow’s picture: pixels in space

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