Rich Young Cluster Cep OB 3b

Cep OB 3b is rich young cluster located in the northern constellation of Cepheus. This image was created by combining individual images observed through four different filters on the 0.9 meter telescope at Kitt Peak: blue, visual (cyan), near infrared (orange) and an emission line of hydrogen (red). The brightest yellow star near the center of the image is a foreground star, lying between us and the young cluster. The other bright stars are the massive young stars of the cluster that are heating the gas and dust in the cloud and blowing out cavities. Surrounding these massive cluster stars are thousands of smaller young stars that may be in the process of forming planetary systems.