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APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
R136: The Massive Stars of 30 Doradus
Explanation: In the center of star-forming region 30 Doradus lies a huge cluster of the largest, hottest, most massive stars known. These stars, known as the star cluster R136 , and part of the surrounding nebula are captured here in this gorgeous visible-light image from the Hubble Space Telescope . Gas and dust clouds in 30 Doradus , also known as the Tarantula Nebula, have been sculpted into elongated shapes by powerful winds and ultraviolet radiation from these hot cluster stars. The 30 Doradus Nebula lies within a neighboring galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud , located a mere 170,000 light-years away.
| Date | December 11, 2005 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Credit: J. Trauger ( JPL ), J. Westphal ( Caltech ), N. Walborn ( STScI ), R. Barba' ( La Plata Obs. ), NASA |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |