Andromeda galaxy to cosmic cliffs: 10 stellar images taken by Nasa telescopes

This picture is from Nasa's Galaxy Evolution Explorer and shows the big Andromeda galaxy, also known as Messier 31. It's the heaviest galaxy in our local group, which includes our own Milky Way. (Photo credit: Nasa)

Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope snapped a picture of a giant cloud of cold gas and dust in the Carina Nebula, located 7,500 light-years away in the Carina constellation. This cloud, shaped like a pillar, is where new stars are born. It's filled with activity as young, hot stars shape it with strong winds and intense ultraviolet light. Some parts get torn apart while denser areas stand firm, forming these thick pillars. Deep inside these pillars, new stars keep emerging in the cold darkness. (Photo credit: Nasa)

This picture from Nasa's Spitzer Space Telescope reveals the Orion nebula, which is where stars are born and is our closest one, located 1,450 light-years away from Earth. (Photo credit: Nasa)

In September 2023, Nasa's Juno spacecraft took this picture of Jupiter during its 54th close pass by the planet. The colorful stripes and bands in Jupiter's atmosphere stretch from the clouds to about 1,860 miles (3,000 kilometers) below. (Photo credit: Nasa)

The Cosmic Cliffs are the edge of a huge gas hole in NGC 3324, about 7,600 light-years away. Intense radiation and strong winds from massive young stars at the center of the bubble shaped this cavernous area, slowly wearing away the nebula's wall. (Photo credit: Nasa)

This picture shows the north pole of Jupiter's moon Io. It was taken on October 15, 2023, by JunoCam on Nasa's Juno spacecraft. Some peaks in this area were never seen before because previous missions didn't cover the high latitudes well. You can spot three of these new mountains near the top of the image, close to the line marking the day and night boundary. (Photo credit: Nasa)

These Nasa Hubble Space Telescope pictures show two different views of the Whirlpool Galaxy, also known as M51. The image taken in visible light, displays the galaxy's graceful spiral arms, pink star-forming regions, and bright blue star clusters. (Photo credit: Nasa)

The Messier 81, or M81, spiral galaxy shines brilliantly in this fresh composite image captured by Nasa's Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescopes, along with the Nasa Galaxy Evolution Explorer. (Photo credit: Nasa)

The Hubble Deep Field (HDF), captured by Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope, reveals hundreds of new galaxies never seen before. Alongside familiar spirals and ellipticals, there's a diverse range of galaxy shapes and colors, crucial for understanding how the universe evolved. Some of these galaxies could have emerged within a billion years after the Big Bang. (Photo credit: Nasa)

The Crab Nebula is the aftermath of a huge star exploding in a supernova. People in China and Japan spotted this explosion almost 1,000 years ago, in 1054. (Photo credit: Nasa)