A tumultuous landscape of gas and dust, filled with bright glowing clouds, knots of darker gas, and stars.

C92, the Carina Nebula (NGC 3372)

Astronomers targeted Caldwell 92 to create one of the largest panoramic images ever taken with Hubble’s cameras, generating a stunning 50-light-year-wide view of the tumultuous central region of this strange stellar nursery. Also known as the Carina Nebula and NGC 3372, Caldwell 92 is sculpted by the action of outflowing winds and scorching ultraviolet radiation from the monster stars that inhabit this inferno. These stars are shredding the surrounding material that is the last vestige of the giant cloud from which the stars were born.

Credits: NASA, ESA, N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley), and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA); CTIO data: N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley) and NOAO/AURA/NSF
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Image CreditNASA, ESA, N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley), and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA); CTIO data: N. Smith (University of California, Berkeley) and NOAO/AURA/NSF
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