The stars of the Pleiades open cluster shine alongside blue reflection nebulas. (Image credit: Mark Germani)

Astrophotographer Mark Germani captured a phenomenal view of the Pleiades open star cluster surrounded by glowing blue nebulas 445 light-years from Earth in the constellation Taurus.

The bright stars are surrounded by vast interstellar clouds of dust and gas known as reflection nebulas, which preferentially reflect the blue light of nearby stars, according to NASA . Astronomers believe the dust is not material left over from the cluster's formation, but a cloud the Pleiades is simply moving through.

Germani spent over 18 hours imaging the Pleiades from his viewpoint in Vancouver, Canada, using an Askar SQA55 quintuplet refractor telescope and ZWO astronomy camera fitted with a filter designed to block wavelengths of ultraviolet and infrared light.

"I have had some difficulty with M45 in the past, so I decided to take a different approach with this image, ditching my light pollution filter and…