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What is a
bow shock?
Named for the crescent-shaped
wave made by a ship as it moves through water,
a bow shock can be created in space when two
streams of gas collide. LL Ori emits a vigorous
solar wind, a stream of charged particles
moving rapidly outward from the star. Our
own Sun has a less energetic version of this
wind that is responsible for auroral displays
on the Earth.
The material in the fast wind
from LL Ori collides with slow-moving gas
evaporating, away from the center of the Orion
Nebula, which is located to the lower right
in this Heritage image. The surface where
the two winds collide is the crescent-shaped
bow shock seen in the image. |
