Nebula · Our neighbour galaxies

Tarantula Nebula

Star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud

From the Sun

163,000 light-years

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Tarantula NebulaOpen in 3D
Picture: ESO

What it is

The brightest star-forming region in the Local Group. If it were as close as the Orion Nebula it would cast shadows on Earth.

The picture hangs at that distance facing Earth, as large as it is on the sky; how deep the object is cannot be seen, so it is flat.

The picture

Taken by
European Southern Observatory
Picture spans
about 2,800 ly
From the Sun
163,000 light-years
RA / Dec
84.75° / -69.44°
Credit
ESO

Tarantula Nebula

The Tarantula Nebula is a large H II region in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), forming its south-east corner. The nebula is named for the arrangement of its bright, glowing gas filaments and dusty tendrils which stretch outward and look like the legs of a tarantula.

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Our neighbour galaxies