AAO image reference UKS 27. « Previous || Next »
Top left is NE. Image width is about 21 arc min
Image and text © 1989-2002, Anglo-Australian Observatory. Photograph from UK Schmidt plates by David Malin.
The nearby Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is a very active star-forming galaxy. The most massive region of star formation is around 30 Doradus (the Tarantula nebula) which can be seen with the unaided eye, but hundreds of lesser examples are visible with a telescope. This picture shows LHA 120-N 44, also known as Henize 44. The energetic ultraviolet light from these stars is absorbed by hydrogen and produces the distinctive red glow from an enormous distance around the cluster.
As well as radiating strongly in ultraviolet light (a result of their high temperature) massive young stars also produce vigorous stellar winds. Eventually they will disperse the hydrogen around them, enlarging the obvious cavity around them.
Related images
UKS 15. The Large Magellanic Cloud
UKS 14a. The eastern end of the Large Magellanic Cloud
UKS 16. Star clouds north of the Large Magellanic Cloud
UKS 28. The Henize 55 nebula in the LMC
For details of object position and photographic exposure, search technical table by UKS reference number.