Star formation region Lupus 3
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
ESOcast 148 Light: Clouded Star Birth (4K UHD)
Zooming in on the Lupus 3 star-forming region
Panning across the Lupus 3 star-forming region
A dark cloud of cosmic dust snakes across
this spectacular wide field image, illuminated by the brilliant light
of new stars. This dense cloud is a star-forming region called Lupus 3,
where dazzlingly hot stars are born from collapsing masses of gas and
dust. This image was created from images taken using the VLT Survey
Telescope and the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope and is the most detailed
image taken so far of this region.
The Lupus 3 star forming region lies within the constellation of Scorpius
(The Scorpion), only 600 light-years away from Earth. It is part of a
larger complex called the Lupus Clouds, which takes its name from the
adjacent constellation of Lupus (The Wolf). The clouds resemble smoke billowing across a background of millions of stars, but in fact these clouds are a dark nebula.
Nebulae
are great swathes of gas and dust strung out between the stars,
sometimes stretching out over hundreds of light-years. While many
nebulae are spectacularly illuminated by the intense radiation of hot
stars, dark nebulae shroud the light of the celestial objects within
them. They are also known as absorption nebulae, because they are made
up of cold, dense particles of dust that absorb and scatter light as it
passes through the cloud.
Famous dark nebulae include the Coalsack Nebula and the Great Rift, which are large enough to be seen with the naked eye, starkly black against the brilliance of the Milky Way.
Lupus 3 has an irregular form, appearing like a misshapen
snake across the sky. In this image it is a region of contrasts, with
thick dark trails set against the glare of bright blue stars at the
centre. Like most dark nebulae, Lupus 3 is an active star formation
region, primarily composed of protostars and very young stars. Nearby
disturbances can cause denser clumps of the nebula to contract under
gravity, becoming hot and pressurised in the process. Eventually, a
protostar is born out of the extreme conditions in the core of this
collapsing cloud.
The two brilliant stars in the centre of this image
underwent this very process. Early in their lives, the radiation they
emitted was largely blocked by the thick veil of their host nebula,
visible only to telescopes at infrared and radio wavelengths. But as
they grew hotter and brighter, their intense radiation and strong
stellar winds swept the surrounding areas clear of gas and dust,
allowing them to emerge gloriously from their gloomy nursery to shine
brightly.
Understanding nebulae is critical for understanding the processes of
star formation — indeed, it is thought that the Sun formed in a star
formation region very similar to Lupus 3 over four billion years ago. As
one of the closest stellar nurseries, Lupus 3 has been the subject of
many studies; in 2013, the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope at ESO’s La Silla Observatory in Chile captured a smaller picture of its dark smoke-like columns and brilliant stars (eso1303).
More Information
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Contacts
Richard Hook
ESO Public Information Officer
Garching bei München, Germany
Tel: +49 89 3200 6655
Cell: +49 151 1537 3591
Email: rhook@eso.org
ESO Public Information Officer
Garching bei München, Germany
Tel: +49 89 3200 6655
Cell: +49 151 1537 3591
Email: rhook@eso.org
Source: ESO/News
