Flight to the Carina Nebula Complex

This visualization travels across interstellar space to the vast star-forming region of the Carina Nebula Complex. Starting with the 2D sky as seen from Earth, the sequence traces out the nearby constellations and identifies some prominent star clusters in the widefield view. Shifting into 3D, the video flies through the star field with distances based upon the Gaia star catalog. Arriving some 7,500 light-years away, the scene shifts into the infrared light view of the Spitzer Space Telescope to showcase the dust clouds that stretch across the region. The sequence finishes by illustrating the locations of multiwavelength observations from four NASA space telescopes.

This video is a product of the AstroViz Project of NASA’s Universe of Learning. A longer, narrated companion piece, “Star Formation from the Carina Nebula to the Cosmic Cliffs,” explores the interconnected nature of star clusters, gas, and dust across the Carina Nebula Complex using multiwavelength imagery. An additional non-narrated visualization, “Exploring the Cosmic Cliffs in 3D,” showcases an experiential flythrough of that ethereal landscape.

Running time: 1 minutes 20 seconds