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Credit & Copyright: NASA, ESA, Hubble,
J.
Anderson et al. (STScI);
Acknowledgment: The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA),
A. Nota (ESA/STScI), the Westerlund 2 Science Team, and the ESO
Explanation:
What if you could go right into a cluster where stars are forming?
A one-minute, time-lapse,
video visualization of just
this has been made with 3D
computer modeling
of the region surrounding the star cluster
Westerlund 2, based on
images from the
Hubble Space Telescope in
visible and
infrared light.
Westerlund 2
spans about 10 light years across and lies about 20,000 light years distant toward
the constellation of the Ship's Keel
(Carina).
As the
illustrative animation
begins, the greater
Gum 29 nebula
fills the screen, with the young cluster of bright stars visible in the center.
Stars zip past you as you approach the cluster.
Soon your
imaginary ship
pivots and you pass over light-year
long pillars
of interstellar gas and dust.
Strong
winds
and radiation from massive young stars destroy all but the densest nearby
dust clumps, leaving these pillars in their
shadows --
many pointing back toward the cluster center.
Last, you pass into the top of the
star cluster and survey hundreds of the
most massive stars known.
Open Science:
Browse 1,500+ codes in the Astrophysics Source Code Library
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: open cluster - emission nebula
Publications with words: open cluster - emission nebula
See also:
- Open Star Clusters M35 and NGC 2158
- APOD: 2025 February 25 Á M41: The Little Beehive Star Cluster
- APOD: 2025 February 18 Á Thors Helmet versus the Seagull
- APOD: 2025 February 11 Á The Spider and the Fly
- APOD: 2024 December 17 Á Near to the Heart Nebula
- The Elephant s Trunk in Cepheus
- APOD: 2024 October 29 Á NGC 602: Stars Versus Pillars from Webb