Cosmic 'seagull' locks eyes with the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in long-awaited test image — Space photo of the week

Stare into the transfixing eye of the "Seagull Nebula" in this newly-released test image from the visionary Vera C. Rubin Observatory.

quick facts

What it is: The head of the sassy Seagull Nebula (IC 2177)

Where it is: Between the constellations Monoceros and Canis Major, about 3,700 light-years away

When it was shared: Oct. 22, 2026

When a seagull stares you down, scientists recommend that you stare right back at it to keep your dignity (and your french fries) intact.

Two years ago, astronomers at the Vera C. Rubin Observatory put this idea — and their brand-new telescope — to a test of cosmic proportions, aiming an experimental 144-megapixel camera at the menacing blue eye of the Seagull Nebula (IC 2177).

Located about 3,700 light-years from Earth, the Seagull Nebula is a conglomeration of three giant, billowing clouds of irradiated gas.…