In the Center of NGC 604
Explanation:
Stars are sometimes born in the midst of chaos.
About 3 million years ago in the
nearby galaxy M33,
a large cloud of gas spawned dense internal knots which gravitationally
collapsed to form stars. But
NGC 604
was so large, it could form enough stars to make a
globular
cluster.
Many
young stars from this cloud
are visible above, along with what is left of the initial gas
cloud. Some stars were so massive they have already evolved and
exploded in a
supernova.
The brightest stars that are left emit
light so energetic that they create
one of the largest cloud of ionized hydrogen gas known,
second only to the
30 Doradus Cluster
in Milky Way's close neighbor,
the
Large Magellanic Cloud.
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.
