N81: Star Cradle in the SMC
Explanation:
This dramatic Hubble Space Telescope
image
captures the birth of a cluster of massive stars.
The newborn stars are seen just
as they emerge from their natal nebula.
Only 12 light-years across, the nebula is cataloged as
N81 and lies some 200,000
light-years away within a neighboring galaxy known as
the Small Magellanic Cloud (
SMC).
Other nebulae which surround massive star clusters can be a
thousand or more light-years across.
But, prior to the Hubble observations, it was unknown whether
N81 and
similar, compact
emission nebulae
were cradles of single stars or star clusters.
In
the
case of N81,
the Hubble data clearly reveal multiple hot
stars, some nearly 300,000 times as luminous as the Sun.
The colorful
image emphasizes
graceful arcs of dark interstellar dust and
fluorescing gas sculpted by the young stars' energetic winds
and radiation.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
