APOD 3.3

This is a picture of the star Zeta Ophiuchi as it pushes through dust and the interstellar medium. I chose to write about this picture for several reasons, the first being that it is relevant to the material being covered in class. Some of the particles that can be seen on the front of Zeta Oph are from the interstellar medium. While not appreciable by themselves, the motion of this star has brought them closer together and in doing so has made them much more visible. Another reason I chose to write about this picture is because of what is occurring in it. In this picture a star that is 20 times more massive than our own Sun is moving at 24 kilometers per second. The force necessary to bring a star of this mass to this speed is extremely high, but the fact that it has occurred is simply astounding and is why I chose to write about this picture.