IC 4628 Widefield

The Prawn Nebula IC 4628 is located in the southern part of the constellation Scorpius. It is an H II region that in reality is much larger than the section of sky shown here. In the lower part of the image, faint blue reflection nebulae can be seen, pointing to the ionizing sources of the region. Just outside the field of view lies the open star cluster NGC 6231. Further to the south is the nebula region RCW 113, which forms the lower part of the entire H II complex. The prominent dark nebula in the lower right of the image is GN 16.43.7, also known as the “Dark Tower of Scorpius.” Overall, this part of the Milky Way — the Sco OB1 association — is one of the most fascinating star-forming regions in the southern Milky Way.