IC 5146, commonly known as the Cocoon Nebula, lies about 4000 light years from Earth in a rich star field area of the constellation Cygnus. The nebula is enveloped in a dust-choked molecular cloud and has both emission and reflection components associated with its nebulosity as seen in the above image's red and blue colorations. The bright star in the center of the Cocoon is responsible for “lighting up” the surrounding gas and giving us this beautiful view of a stellar nursery in progress.