New image of the Tarantula Nebula

See an annotated version of this image here. Image via ESO.

Astronomers using the VLT Survey Telescope at the European Southern Observatory’s Paranal Observatory in Chile captured this very detailed new image of the Tarantula Nebula – aka 30 Doradus – one of the most famous sights of Earth’s southern skies.

The Tarantula Nebula – at the top of the image above – is about 160,000 light-years away. It spans more than 1,000 light-years. Astronomers know it as an energetic star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy to our Milky Way.

Bottom line: New image of the Tarantula Nebula from ESO.

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Eleanor Imster

Eleanor Imster has helped write and edit EarthSky since 1995. She was an integral part of the award-winning EarthSky radio series almost since it began until it ended in 2013. Today, as Lead Editor at EarthSky.org, she helps present the science and nature stories and photos you enjoy. She also serves as one of the voices of EarthSky on social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter and G+. She and her husband live in Tennessee and have two grown sons.