PIX4571331: Comete Panstarrs C/2011 L4 and Gamma Cephei - Comete PanStarrs (C/2011 L4) near the star Gamma Cephei (the brightest star at the top left), May 12, 2013. Due to the precession of equinoxes, Gamma Cephei (Errai) will indicate the northern Celestial pole in a few thousand years. Image taken on May 12 2013, when this comet developed a very interesting fan-shaped tail. The bright star in the image is Gamma Cephei, aka Errai. Due to the precession of the equinoxes, Gamma Cephei will be our next bright northern pole star, in a couple thousand years / Bridgeman Images
PIX4571615: The Constellation of the Southern Cross and the Coal Bag - Crux constellation and Coalsack nebula - The Coal Bag is a dark nebula in the constellation of the Southern Cross, located about 600 light years from Earth. The Coalsack dark nebula is located at approximately 600 light years away from Earth, in the Crux constellation / Bridgeman Images
PIX4591397: Constellations of the Great Bear, Little Bear and Dragon - Polaris, the Big Dipper to Arcturus - Also visible are the constellations of the Little Lion, the Hunting Dogs, the Boreale Crown (with Arcturus, the brilliant star at the top of the picture), the Boreale Crown, Cephee, Cassiopee, the Giraffe and the Lynx. Also visible are the constellations of Leo Minor, Canes Venatici, Botes, Corona Borealis, Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Camelopardalis and Lynx / Bridgeman Images
PIX4591957: Constellation de la Licorne - Constellation of Monoceros - Atlas celeste by John Flamsteed published in 1776 by J. Fortin Troieme edition, reviewed, corrected and augmented by Messrs. Delalande and Megain. Recolorise by us Celestial Atlas of John Flamsteed published in 1776. Recolored / Bridgeman Images
PIX4583213: Remains of supernova SN 1006 - Supernova remnant SN 1006 - Remains of supernova SN 1006 located 7000 years ago - light in the constellation Wolf. This supernova that appeared in 1006 is the result of a white dwarf star that absorbs the matter of a companion star became unstable and eventually exploded. This image is a composite of X-ray images obtained by the Chandra telescope (blue), by Cerro Tololo's 90 cm telescope (yellow) and by the Digitized Sky Survey (orange and light blue), and by the VLA and the Green Bank's telescope radio (red). Just over a thousand years ago, the stellar explosion known as supernova SN 1006 was observed. It was brighter than Venus, and visible during the day for weeks. The brightest supernova ever recorded on Earth, this spectacular light show was documented in China, Japan, Europe, and the Arab world. Astronomers now understand that SN 1006 was caused by a white dwarf star that captured mass from a companion star until the white dwarf became unstable and exploded. Recent observations of the remnant of SN 1006 reveal the liberation of elements such as iron that were previously locked up inside the star. Because no material falls back into a neutron star or black hole after this type of supernova explosion, the liberation of this star's contents is complete. This is a composite image of the SN 1006 supernova remnant, which is located about 7000 light years from Earth. Shown here are X - ray data from Nasa's Chandra X - ray Observatory (blue), optical data from the University of Michigan's 0.9 meter Curtis Schmidt telescope at the NSF's Cerro Tololo Inter - American Observatory (CTIO; yellow) and the Digitized Sky Survey (orange and light blue), plus radio data from the NRAO's Very Large Array and Green Bank Telescope (VLA/GB/GBV T ; red) / Bridgeman Images
PIX4583292: Supernova 1993J exploding (artist's impression) - In 1993 the supernova SN 1993J appeared in the galaxy M81. The illustration shows the supergiant red star exploding after transferring a huge mass of hydrogen to its companion star (right). In this artist's view the red supergiant supernova progenitor star (left) is exploding after having transferred about 10 solar masses of hydrogen gas to the blue companion star (right). This interaction process happened over about 250 years and affected the supernova explosion to such an extent that SN 1993J was later known as one of the most peculiar supernovae ever seen / Bridgeman Images
ITR4561858: Large apartments, war room by Charles Le Brun (1619-1690), detail of the equestrian plaster by Louis XIV (1638-1715) by Antoine Coysevox (1640-1720). Chateau de Versailles (Les Yvelines). Principal architects Louis Le Vau (1612-1670) and Jules Hardouin Mansart (1646-1708), 1660-1700. / Bridgeman Images
ITR4561904: Bodywork of the organ of the royal chapel began by Jules Hardouin Mansart (1646-1708) in 1699 and completed in 1710 by Robert De Cotte (1656-1735).Chateau de Versailles (Les Yvelines). Principal architects: Louis Le Vau (1612-1670) and Jules Hardouin Mansart (1646-1708), 1660-1700. / Bridgeman Images
ITR4562108: Le Potager du Roi is a historical garden created at the request of Louis XIV (1638-1715) by Jean Baptiste de la Quintinie (1624-1698) in 1678. Chateau de Versailles (Les Yvelines), 1660-1700. Gardens of Andre Le Notre (1613-1700) and principal architects: Louis Le Vau (1612-1670) and Jules Hardouin Mansart (1646-1708). / Bridgeman Images