#4 Cosmic Caterpillar

This is a light-year-long star-like gas and dust cluster resembling a cosmic cramp. This caterpillar of IRAS 20324 + 4057 is a precursor to the early evolution of the gas and dust cluster evolution. It is still in the process of collecting material from the surrounding gas blanket. However, the hard ultraviolet radiation winds from O-type stars, which are extremely bright, about 15 light years away from the caterpillar, erode this veil, giving the gas and toza a long shape. If this erosion occurs too much, the star will be able to collect less material and the mass of the star will decrease accordingly.

IRAS 20324 + 4057 displayed by Hubble telescope in 2006 is 4,500 light years away from Constellation Swan.