NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day for September 10, 2026 featured LDN 1295, also called the Giraffe Nebula, in the constellation Cassiopeia, described in the source as the constellation of the mythical queen of Aethiopia. The entry presents an image credited to Alessandro Merga in which many viewers perceive a giraffe facing right, while some see a squirrel instead. The expectation is attributed to pareidolia, the tendency to find familiar patterns.

LDN 1295 is listed in the Lynds Catalogue of Dark Nebulas, compiled in 1962 by American astronomer Beverly Lynds, whom the source calls a pioneer for women in astronomy and astrophysics. Dark nebulas are interstellar clouds of dust and gas that block visible light from stars behind them, and the source notes such objects are often faint and difficult targets for astrophotographers.

The page also states that APOD's main NASA site was moving from apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod. Authors and editors listed were Cecilia Chirenti, Robert Nemiroff, Jerry Bonnell and Keighley Rockcliffe.