How do emission and reflection nebulae differ?(1 point) Responses interactions with light interactions with light hard line edges hard line edges contain remnants of stars contain remnants of stars the presence of young stars
1 answer
The presence of young stars is the main difference between emission and reflection nebulae. Emission nebulae are primarily composed of ionized gas that emits light due to energy absorption from nearby young, hot stars. These nebulae often have glowing, colorful appearances due to the specific gases present and the energetic processes occurring. On the other hand, reflection nebulae do not have ionized gas, but instead consist of dust particles that scatter and reflect the light emitted by nearby stars. They often appear bluish in color because of the scattering of shorter-wavelength blue light. While both emission and reflection nebulae can have boundaries that are not well-defined, they do not typically have hard line edges. Additionally, while some emission nebulae may contain remnants of stars that have ended their lives, this is not a defining characteristic for all emission nebulae.