The marked structure is the element of this nebula complex usually identified as the 'Dragon's Head', NGC 2035, with the Seagull Nebula (NGC 2032) extending back to form the notional dragon's body. The whorled, rounded form to the east (left) is NGC 2040, a supernova remnant containing a cluster of stars. Imagery provided by Aladin sky atlas
The brightest part of the nebula consists of a vast star-forming region, hundreds of light years across, within which newly coalescing stars cause the clouds of matter around them to glow in a shimmering range of purples and reds.
From out of this emission nebula, a vast plume of material extends into the space. This strand of matter has been twisted into a distinctive whirlpool shape by an ancient supernova explosion, leaving a dark core in the midst of circular folds of nebulous material. It is this twisting filamentary structure with a distinctive 'eye' at its centre that gives the Dragon's Head its name.
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