Tag Archive for 'Small Magellanic Cloud'

This Hubble image shows a small region of the Small Magellanic Cloud near the center of the open cluster NGC 346. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / C. Murray.

Hubble Focuses on Star-Studded Region in Neighbor Galaxy

Mar 17, 2025 by Enrico de Lazaro

A new image taken with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows a small region of the Small Magellanic Cloud, one of the closest galaxies to the Milky...

This Webb image shows NGC 346, a massive star cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud. Yellow circles overlaid on the image indicate the positions of the ten stars surveyed in the study. Image credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / STScI / Olivia C. Jones, UK ATC / Guido De Marchi, ESTEC / Margaret Meixner, USRA.

Protoplanetary Disks around Sun-Like Stars Appear to Live Longer in Early Universe

Dec 16, 2024 by News Staff

In 2003, Hubble provided evidence of a massive exoplanet around a very old star. Such stars possess only small amounts of heavier elements that are the...

This image of NGC 602 includes data from Webb’s NIRCam (Near-InfraRed Camera) and MIRI (Mid-InfraRed Instrument) instruments. Image credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / Webb / P. Zeidler / E. Sabbi / A. Nota / M. Zamani, ESA & Webb.

Webb Detects First Rich Population of Brown Dwarf Candidates outside Milky Way Galaxy

Oct 28, 2024 by News Staff

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope have detected a population of 64 brown dwarf candidates with masses ranging from 50 to 84...

This Hubble image shows NGC 346, an open star cluster some 210,000 light-years in the constellation of Tucana. Image credit: NASA / ESA / C. Murray, Space Telescope Science Institute / Gladys Kober, NASA & Catholic University of America.

Hubble Space Telescope Captures Ultraviolet Image of NGC 346

Sep 3, 2024 by Enrico de Lazaro

The Hubble team has released a striking new photo taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope of the open cluster NGC 346, which resides in one of our...

This Hubble image shows NGC 261, an emission nebula some 200,000 light-years away from Earth in the constellation of Tucana. Image credit: NASA / ESA / L.C. Johnson, Northwestern University / Gladys Kober, NASA & Catholic University of America.

Hubble Observes Emission Nebula in Small Magellanic Cloud: NGC 261

Aug 30, 2024 by Enrico de Lazaro

NGC 261 resides within the Small Magellanic Cloud, one of our Milky Way Galaxy’s closest neighbors. This Hubble image shows NGC 261, an emission nebula...

An artist’s impression of a massive binary system. Image credit: ESO / M. Kornmesser / S.E. de Mink.

Astronomers Find Population of Stripped Helium Stars in Magellanic Clouds

Dec 14, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Removing the hydrogen-rich layers from a main sequence star exposes the helium-rich core. Such stripped helium stars are known at high and low masses,...

This Webb image of NGC 346 traces emission from cool gas and dust. Image credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / STScI / N. Habel, JPL / P. Kavanagh, Maynooth University.

Webb Captures Mid-Infrared Image of NGC 346

Oct 10, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

A new image taken with the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) onboard the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope shows streamers of gas and dust studded with...

Optical (left) and infrared (right) image of NGC 346 in the Small Magellanic Cloud; the positions of the main ionizing sources of NGC 346, namely SSN 7 and SSN 9, are highlighted by red and green squares, respectively. Image credit: A. Nota, ESA & STScI / NASA / ESA / CSA / O. Jones, UK ATC / G. De Marchi, ESTEC / M. Meixner, USRA / A. Pagan, STScI / N. Habel, USRA / L. Lenkic, USRA / L. Chu, NASA’s Ames Research Center.

Two Massive Touching Stars Will Merge as Black Holes in 18 Billion Years, Astronomers Predict

Apr 27, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

SSN 7 is a so-called contact binary located in the Small Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy some 210,000 light-years away in the constellation of Tucana....

The left panel shows a three-color composite mosaic of NGC 346 combining Webb’s F277W (blue), F335M (green) and F444W (red) filters. The region is rich in structures of knots, arcs and filaments. Areas of bright pink and/or red emission are associated with clumpy star formation. The spatially resolved PAH emission excited by ultraviolet photons in green is brightest in regions corresponding to the edges of dense material, characteristic of a photodissociation region. Massive stars, stars belonging to the BS90 cluster (circled in green) and the Small Magellanic Cloud field population are also visible. The right panel shows a mosaic image from the F335M filter showing four different populations of stars: pre-main-sequence stars (blue circles), young stellar objects with Paα (orange diamonds), young stellar objects without Paα (red squares) and stars matched with the HST-PMS catalogue (purple stars). Image credit: Jones et al., doi: 10.1038/s41550-023-01945-7.

Webb Detects Planetary Ingredients in NGC 346

Apr 25, 2023 by Natali Anderson

Located in the Small Magellanic Cloud at a distance of roughly 200,000 light-years, NGC 346 is a prominent young cluster — roughly 3 million years...

This image, taken by the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) onboard the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope, shows the star cluster NGC 346. Webb reveals the presence of many more building blocks than previously expected, not only for stars, but also planets, in the form of clouds packed with dust and hydrogen. The plumes and arcs of gas in this image contains two types of hydrogen. The pink gas represents energized hydrogen, which is typically as hot as around 10,000 degrees Celsius (approximately 18,000 degrees Fahrenheit) or more, while the more orange gas represents dense, molecular hydrogen, which is much colder at around minus 200 degrees Celsius or less (approximately minus 300 degrees Fahrenheit), and associated dust. The colder gas provides an excellent environment for stars to form, and, as they do, they change the environment around them. The effect of this is seen in the various ridges throughout, which are created as the light of these young stars breaks down the dense clouds. The many pillars of glowing gas show the effects of this stellar erosion throughout the region. In this image blue was assigned to the wavelength of 2.0 microns (F200W), green was assigned to 2.77 microns (F277W), orange was assigned to 3.35 microns (F335M), and red was assigned to 4.44 microns (F444W). Image credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / O. Jones, UK ATC / G. De Marchi, ESTEC / M. Meixner, USRA / A. Pagan, STScI / N. Habel, USRA / L. Lenkic, USRA / L. Chu, NASA’s Ames Research Center.

Webb Probes Most Massive Star-Forming Region of Small Magellanic Cloud

Jan 13, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope have revealed many new pockets of star formation in NCG 346, an open star cluster in the...

This Hubble image shows the young open star NGC 376. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / A. Nota / G. De Marchi.

Hubble Space Telescope Observes NGC 376

Dec 5, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have produced this beautiful image of NGC 376, a young open star cluster in the Small Magellanic...

Shown here in purple, the Magellanic Corona stretches more than 100,000 light-years from the main mass of stars, gas, and dust that make up the Magellanic Clouds, intermingling with the hotter and more extensive corona that surrounds the Milky Way. Image credit: Leah Hustak, STScI.

Magellanic Corona: Astronomers Detect Protective Shield around Small and Large Magellanic Clouds

Oct 4, 2022 by News Staff

The Small and Large Magellanic Clouds — satellite galaxies of the Milky Way Galaxy — are surrounded by a diffuse halo of hot, supercharged...

The unusual shape of the open cluster NGC 346 is partly due to stars and gas spiraling into the center of the cluster in a river-like motion; the red spiral superimposed on NGC 346 traces the movement of stars and gas toward the center; this spiraling motion is the most efficient way to feed star formation from the outside toward the center of the cluster. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Andi James, STScI.

Astronomers Find Spiraling Stars in NGC 346

Sep 8, 2022 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope...

This image shows the Small Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy that is a satellite of our Milky Way Galaxy. Image credit: Pingel et al., arXiv: 2111.05339.

Astronomers Snap New Radio Image of Small Magellanic Cloud

Dec 24, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

A team of radio astronomers has assembled the most sensitive and detailed view of the neutral hydrogen emission associated with a nearby dwarf galaxy called...

This Hubble image shows the open star cluster NGC 330. The color image was made from separate exposures taken in the ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared regions of the spectrum with Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). Four filters were used to sample various wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / J. Kalirai / A. Milone.

Hubble Observes Open Cluster NGC 330

Jun 28, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have captured a striking new photo of NGC 330, an open star cluster that resides in the Small Magellanic...

This Hubble image shows the supernova remnant 1E 0102.2-7219. Image credit: NASA / ESA / J. Banovetz & D. Milisavljevic, Purdue University.

Hubble Observes Young Supernova Remnant in Small Magellanic Cloud

Jan 15, 2021 by News Staff

A massive star exploded in the Small Magellanic Cloud between 2,000 and 1,000 years ago and left behind an expanding, gaseous remnant called 1E 0102.2-7219....

Part of the SMASH dataset showing an unprecedented wide-angle view of the Large Magellanic Cloud. Image credit: CTIO / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / SMASH / D. Nidever, Montana State University / Travis Rector, University of Alaska Anchorage / Mahdi Zamani & Davide de Martin.

Astronomers Capture Deepest Views Ever of Magellanic Clouds

Dec 4, 2020 by News Staff

New images, taken with the 520-megapixel Dark Energy Camera (DECam) on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-m Telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory,...

Data from more than 1.8 billion stars have been used to create this map of the entire sky. It shows the total brightness and color of stars observed by ESA’s Gaia satellite and released as part of Gaia’s Early Data Release 3. Brighter regions represent denser concentrations of bright stars, while darker regions correspond to patches of the sky where fewer and fainter stars are observed. The color of the image is obtained by combining the total amount of light with the amount of blue and red light recorded by Gaia in each patch of the sky. The bright horizontal structure that dominates the image is the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy. It is actually a flattened disk seen edge-on that contains most of the Galaxy’s stars. In the middle of the image, the Galactic center appears bright, and thronged with stars. Darker regions across the Galactic plane correspond to foreground clouds of interstellar gas and dust, which absorb the light of more distant stars. Many of these clouds conceal stellar nurseries where new generations of stars are currently being born. Dotted across the image are also many globular and open clusters, as well as entire galaxies beyond our own. The two bright objects in the lower right of the image are the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, two dwarf galaxies orbiting the Milky Way. Image credit: ESA / Gaia / DPAC / CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO / A. Moitinho.

ESA’s Gaia Mission Releases Data on More Than 1.8 Billion Stars

Dec 3, 2020 by News Staff

Astronomers from the Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium released today the most detailed ever catalogue of Milky Way stars. The new data set,...

The Magellanic Stream in zenithal equal-area coordinates: (a) observed H I data for the Magellanic Stream, with the line-of-sight velocity indicated by the color scale and the relative gas column density indicated by the brightness; the points represent the sightlines with ultraviolet-absorption-line observations from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, colored by their line-of-sight velocity; these points show the extent of the ionized gas associated with the stream; (b) the results of the model including the Magellanic Corona and the Milky Way’s hot corona; gas originating in the disks of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) is shown in the model, without separating neutral gas from ionized gas; this affects the morphology of the stream, causing the model to appear smoother and less fragmented than the data; however, the model reproduces the current spatial location and velocity of both clouds, and the velocity gradient of the gas along the stream; the Milky Way disk and background are extracted from real H I images. Image credit: Lucchini et al, doi: 10.1038/s41586-020-2663-4.

Huge Halo of Warm Gas around Magellanic Clouds is Key to Formation of Magellanic Stream

Sep 9, 2020 by News Staff

A team of astronomers from Australia and the United States has found that a halo of warm ionized gas surrounding the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds...

This image from the eROSITA X-ray telescope shows the energetic Universe. As eROSITA scans the sky, the energy of the collected photons is measured with an accuracy ranging from 2% - 6%. To generate this image, in which the whole sky is projected onto an ellipse (so-called Aitoff projection) with the center of the Milky Way in the middle and the body of our Galaxy running horizontally, photons have been color-coded according to their energy (red for energies 0.3-0.6 keV, green for 0.6-1 keV, blue for 1-2.3 keV). The red diffuse glow away from the galactic plane is the emission of the hot gas in the vicinity of the Solar System (the Local Bubble). Along the plane itself, dust and gas absorb the lowest energy X-ray photons, so that only high-energy emitting sources can be seen, and their color appears blue in the image. The hotter gas close to the Galactic center, shown in green and yellow, carries imprinted the history of the most energetic processes in the life of the Milky Way, such as supernova explosions, driving fountains of gas out of the plane, and, possibly, past outburst from the now dormant supermassive black hole in the center of the Milky Way. Piercing through this turbulent, hot diffuse medium, are hundreds of thousands of X-ray sources, which appear mostly white in the image, and uniformly distributed over the sky. Among them, distant active galactic nuclei are visible as point sources, while clusters of galaxies reveal themselves as extended X-ray nebulosities. In total, about one million X-ray sources have been detected in this image. Image credit: Jeremy Sanders, Hermann Brunner & the eSASS team / Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics / Eugene Churazov & Marat Gilfanov, IKI.

eROSITA X-Ray Telescope Captures Hot, Energetic Universe

Jun 19, 2020 by News Staff

A new all-sky image from the eROSITA X-ray telescope onboard the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) space observatory contains over one million objects, about...

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