definitions

dark nebula

noun Astronomy.

a cloud of interstellar gas and dust that absorbs and thus obscures the light from stars behind it, appearing as a dark patch in front of a bright nebula or in an otherwise bright area of sky.

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Nearby words

dark lantern, dark matter, dark meat, dark mineral, dark money, dark nebula, dark of the moon, dark reaction, dark slide, dark star, dark tourism

Origin of dark nebula

First recorded in 1930–35
Also called absorption nebula.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for absorption nebula

dark nebula

noun

a type of nebula that is observed by its blocking of radiation from other sourcesSee nebula
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Science definitions for absorption nebula

dark nebula

See absorption nebula.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.