IC2944 - The Running Chicken Nebula

Officially called IC 2944, the Lambda Centauri Nebula, or the Running Chicken Nebula, its strange nickname comes from the bird-like shape of its brightest region. I was never able to distinguish the shape and I think it resembles more to an eye. Close to the nebula lies the bright star Lambda Centauri, one of the brightest stars in the constellation of Centaurus.

Strangely glowing dark clouds can be also observed floating inside the nebula. These dense, opaque dust clouds - known as 'globules' - are silhouetted against nearby bright stars in the busy star-forming region. Astronomers still know very little about their origin and nature, except that they are generally associated with areas of star formation, called 'HII regions' due to the presence of hydrogen gas. IC 2944 is filled with gas and dust that is illuminated and heated by a loose cluster of massive stars.