The Lupus 3 dark cloud in the constellation of Scorpius
Wide-field view of the Lupus 3 dark cloud and associated hot young stars
Videos
Videos
Zooming in on the Lupus 3 dark cloud and associated hot young stars
Panning across the Lupus 3 dark cloud and associated hot young stars
An evocative new image from ESO shows a dark cloud where new stars are forming, along with a cluster of brilliant stars that have already emerged from their dusty stellar nursery. The new picture was taken with the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope at the La Silla Observatory in Chile and is the best image ever taken in visible light of this little-known object.
On the left of this new image there is a dark column resembling a
cloud of smoke. To the right shines a small group of brilliant stars. At
first glance these two features could not be more different, but they
are in fact closely linked. The cloud contains huge amounts of cool
cosmic dust and is a nursery where new stars are being born. It is
likely that the Sun formed in a similar star formation region more than
four billion years ago.
This cloud is known as Lupus 3 and it lies about 600 light-years from
Earth in the constellation of Scorpius (The Scorpion). The section
shown here is about five light-years across.
As the denser parts of such clouds contract under the effects of
gravity they heat up and start to shine. At first this radiation is
blocked by the dusty clouds and can only be seen by telescopes observing
at longer wavelengths than visible light, such as the infrared. But as
the stars get hotter and brighter their intense radiation and stellar
winds gradually clear the clouds around them until they emerge in all
their glory.
The bright stars right of the centre of this new picture form a
perfect example of a small group of such hot young stars. Some of their
brilliant blue light is being scattered off the remaining dust around
them. The two brightest stars are bright enough to be seen easily with a
small telescope or binoculars. They are young stars that have not yet
started to shine by nuclear fusion in their cores and are still
surrounded by glowing gas [1]. They are probably less than one million years old.
Although they are less obvious at first glance than the bright blue
stars, surveys have found many other very young stellar objects in this
region, which is one of the closest such stellar nurseries to the Sun.
Star formation regions can be huge, such as the Tarantula Nebula (eso0650)
where hundreds of massive stars are being formed. However, most of the
stars in our and other galaxies are thought to have formed in much more
modest regions like the one shown here, where only two bright stars are
visible and no very heavy stars are formed. For this reason, the Lupus 3
region is both fascinating for astronomers and a beautiful illustration
of the early stages of the life of stars.
Notes
[1] These are known as Herbig Ae/Be
stars after the astronomer who first identified them. The A and B refer
to the spectral types of the stars, somewhat hotter than the Sun, and
the “e” indicates that emission lines are present in their spectra, due
to the glow from the gas around them. They shine by converting
gravitational potential energy into heat as they contract.
More information
ESO is the foremost intergovernmental
astronomy organisation in Europe and the world’s most productive
ground-based astronomical observatory by far. It is supported by 15
countries: Austria, Belgium, Brazil, the Czech Republic, Denmark,
France, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain,
Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. ESO carries out an ambitious
programme focused on the design, construction and operation of powerful
ground-based observing facilities enabling astronomers to make
important scientific discoveries. ESO also plays a leading role in
promoting and organising cooperation in astronomical research. ESO
operates three unique world-class observing sites in Chile: La Silla,
Paranal and Chajnantor. At Paranal, ESO operates the Very Large
Telescope, the world’s most advanced visible-light astronomical
observatory and two survey telescopes. VISTA works in the infrared and
is the world’s largest survey telescope and the VLT Survey Telescope is
the largest telescope designed to exclusively survey the skies in
visible light. ESO is the European partner of a revolutionary
astronomical telescope ALMA, the largest astronomical project in
existence. ESO is currently planning the 39-metre European Extremely
Large optical/near-infrared Telescope, the E-ELT, which will become “the
world’s biggest eye on the sky”.
Links
- Research review paper
- Photos of the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope
- Other photos taken with the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope
- Photos of La Silla
Contacts
Fernando ComeronESO
Garching bei München, Germany
Email: fcomeron@eso.org
Richard Hook
ESO, La Silla, Paranal, E-ELT and Survey Telescopes Public Information Officer
Garching bei München, Germany
Tel: +49 89 3200 6655
Cell: +49 151 1537 3591
Email: rhook@eso.org
