Carina Nebula - NGC 3372

A region of star birth and death in the Carina Nebula is so impressive, it is also known as the Grand Nebula.

This image, released for Hubble's 17th anniversary, displays a 50 light-year wide view of the central region inside the Carina Nebula, within the Carina-Sagittarius Arm of the constellation Carina. The nebula is estimated to be between 6,500 and 10,000 light-years from Earth and is somewhat lesser known because of its location in our southern sky. There are at least a dozen brilliant stars that are 50 to 100 times the mass of our Sun within this maelstrom of star birth and death. Red represents the presence of sulfur, green is hydrogen, and blue is oxygen emission.

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Object Name: Carina Nebula, NGC 3372

Release Date: Apr 24, 2007

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



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