If you’re like most people, you’re afraid of spiders. But if you like astronomy, you’re automatically a special kind of an individual, and spiders might not scare you anymore if you see “astronomic representations” of them.
CNET now tells us about the amazing case of a stellar nursery that’s known as the Tarantula Nebula (aka 30 Doradus). You’ll figure out why it’s associated with a tarantula as soon as you see the photo. Over 800,000 stars are believed to have been born in the stellar nursery, with about half a million of them being massive.
The Tarantula Nebula dwells 170,000 light-years away from Earth
170,000 light-years can easily translate to thousands of solar systems that may be separating us from the majestic nebula. That means that the nebula is far enough from us to ruin any hope that we’ll ever get to travel there using the current technology.
Known also as 30 Doradus, the nebula has that moniker from a catalog number containing objects from the Dorado constellation, which received its name in the 16th century. Dorado also qualifies as one of the 88 modern constellations.
Behold the Tarantula Nebula, but be careful not to be trapped in its huge web:
1/ Astronomers have unveiled intricate details of the star-forming region 30 Doradus (Tarantula Nebula), using new data from @ALMAObs . This shows the nebula in a new light, with gas clouds that provide insight into how massive stars shape this region.
🔗 https://t.co/4Z16nKX7Gi pic.twitter.com/OVKvaH3oVS— ESO (@ESO) June 15, 2022
Guido de Marchi, who’s a co-author of the paper, explained:
What makes 30 Doradus unique is that it is close enough for us to study in detail how stars are forming, and yet its properties are similar to those found in very distant galaxies, when the universe was young,
Thanks to 30 Doradus,” de Marchi said, “we can study how stars used to form 10 billion years ago, when most stars were born.
Let us know what you think about the photo and if you have a favorite constellation! The comment section is waiting for you to leave your thoughts!
