This annotated map identifies several prominent features in an image of the Tarantula Nebula (also known as 30 Doradus), a prominent region of star formation located in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), the nearest neighboring galaxy to the Milky Way. The image was produced from numerous exposures by the Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field Camera 3 and Advanced Camera for Surveys in red/near-infrared light.
Individual stars
Some prominent stars are labeled in yellow. Some of these are identified in the Henry Draper Catalog (HD). The stars labeled 2MASS appear in the catalog of objects identified by the 2-Micron All Sky Survey, relatively brighter in infrared light and faint enough in visible light not to appear in catalogs such as HD based on visual observations.
Particularly significant stars identified are:
30 Dor #16, a "runaway" star ejected from the prominent star cluster 30 Doradus, and VFTS #102, the star with the fastest known rotation rate.
Background galaxies
Several background galaxies are visible in the image, labeled in green, though they appear very small because they are much more distant than the Large Magellanic Cloud. A large amount of gas and dust is associated with the LMC and the Tarantula Nebula in particular, obscuring most of the light from more distant sources. Near the edges of the nebula, some galaxies are visible, where the obscuration is not enough to completely block the more distant objects.
These galaxies can provide an absolute reference for measuring the positions and motions of the stars within the Tarantula and the LMC. The motion of these objects is extremely difficult to measure precisely because of the vast distance to the LMC. However with the fine resolution of Hubble's cameras it is possible to measure the motions in images taken some time apart. The background galaxies are immensely farther away, so their positions within the field of view is essentially fixed, providing a frame of reference against which the positions and motions of the closer objects in the Tarantula and LMC can be compared.
Star clusters
Numerous star clusters are scattered in the Tarantula Nebula region, labeled in blue. They formed at different times from giant clouds of gas and dust. Characteristics of the clusters as a whole and their constituent stars enable astronomers to determine their relative ages. The most massive, hottest stars emit copious high-energy radiation, pushing away, compressing, and sculpting the remaining gas and dust, triggering another generation of star formation.
Dark clouds
Dense, cooler, dusty clouds obscure the light from more distant stars, appearing dark against stars and glowing gas behind them, here labeled in blue. The smallest, densest dark clouds are known as Bok globules, in which new stars are likely forming.
Credits
Illustration: NASA, ESA, and Z. Levay (STScI);Image: NASA, ESA, and D. Lennon (ESA/Hubble)
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | Tarantula Nebula, 30 Doradus, 30 Dor, NGC 2070 |
| Object Description | Emission Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud |
| R.A. Position | 05h 38m 42.36s |
| Dec. Position | -69° 6' 3.24" |
| Constellation | Dorado |
| Distance | Approximately 170,000 light-years (52,000 parsecs) |
| Dimensions | This image is roughy 14.4 arcminutes (662 light-years or 204 parsecs) wide. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | This image combines many exposures from the Hubble Space Telescope's Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) and Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) from the HST proposal : D. Lennon and E. Sabbi (ESA/STScI), J. Anderson, S. E. de Mink, R. van der Marel, T. Sohn, and N. Walborn (STScI), N. Bastian (Excellence Cluster, Munich), L. Bedin (INAF, Padua), E. Bressert (ESO), P. Crowther (University of Sheffield), A. de Koter (University of Amsterdam), C. Evans (UKATC/STFC, Edinburgh), A. Herrero (IAC, Tenerife), N. Langer (AifA, Bonn), I. Platais (JHU), and H. Sana (University of Amsterdam). |
| Instrument | HST>ACS/WFC and HST>WFC3/UVIS |
| Exposure Dates | October 2011 |
| Filters | ACS/WFC and WFC3/UVIS: F775W (SDSS i) |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | This image is a composite of separate exposures made by the ACS and WFC3 instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope. |
| Compass Image |  |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
