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> Star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud

Star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud

author: Anglo-Australian Observatory/David Malin Images/Novapix

reference: a-neb20-70010

Image Size 300 DPI: 40 * 51 cm

This picture shows a group of such nebulosities and star clusters stretching across the northern outskirts of our nearest extragalactic neighbour, the Large Magellanic Cloud. Within each cloud of fluorescent hydrogen is a cluster of hot stars and in some cases these stars have begun to blow the surrounding gas away, occasionally producing vast bubbles and shells of nebulosity. When this process is almost complete, as it is in the upper part of the picture, clouds of distinctly blue, very bright stars remain, some in the form of the very compact clusters which are so typical of star formation in the LMC and so unusual in the Milky Way.
The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), is the closest galaxy to the Milky Way, about 160,000 light years distant. Almost all the miriads of stars and star clusters seen here are part of the LMC.

Keywords for this photo:

30 DORADUS - AAO - ASTRONOMY - DIFFUSE NEBULA - EMISSION NEBULA - HENIZE 44 - HENIZE 55 - HENIZE 70 - LARGE MAGELLANIC CLOUD - MASSIVE STAR - N44 - N55 - N70 - NEBULA - NGC 2014 - NGC 2070 - POSTER - SIDING SPRING - SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE - STAR - STAR FORMATION - TARENTULA -