L1688 Star-forming Region in Ophiuchus: Wide Field View (Infrared) | ESO

L1688 Star-forming Region in Ophiuchus: Wide Field View (Infrared) | ESO

This image shows the L1688 region in the Ophiuchus constellation. New stars are born in the colorful clouds of gas and dust seen here. The infrared observations underlying this image reveal new details in the star-forming regions that are usually obscured by the clouds of dust. 

Distance: 450 light years

This image shows stars and clouds of gas and dust distributed over a dark background. A prominent cloud of gas and dust can be seen in the upper left part. It features amorphous clouds in red, green, blue and yellow colors. A similar, but smaller, cloud can be seen both in the upper right and lower right part of the image.

The image was produced with data collected by the VIRCAM instrument, which is attached to the VISTA telescope at the European Southern Observatory’s Paranal Observatory in Chile. The observations were done as part of the VISIONS survey, which will allow astronomers to better understand how stars form in these dust-enshrouded regions.

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)/Meingast et al.

Release Date: May 11, 2023

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