Captured from Texas USA and Morocco this view of M45 reveals the delicate blue reflection nebulosity that surrounds the cluster’s hot young stars. The Pleiades lie about 440 light years away in Taurus where starlight scatters off fine interstellar dust grains drifting through the cluster. The brightest members illuminate long wispy filaments that arc and curl through the field creating the characteristic electric blue glow produced by reflected light rather than ionized gas.

Although often linked to star forming regions the dust seen here is not the remnant of the cluster’s birth but rather a passing cloud the stars are currently moving through. The interaction between the fast moving cluster and the slow drifting dust shapes the subtle structures visible across the frame from feathered streamers to sharper ridges lit by the most luminous stars. This wide field emphasizes both the cluster’s brilliance and the faint complexity of the surrounding dusty medium.