Stellar Titans of Pismis 24 in Scorpius | ESO's La Silla Observatory

Stellar Titans of Pismis 24 in Scorpius |  ESO's La Silla Observatory

Home to some of the largest stars ever discovered, the open stellar cluster Pismis 24 blazes from the core of NGC 6357, a nebula in the constellation of Scorpius (the Scorpion). Several stars in the clusters weigh in at over 100 times the mass of the Sun, making them real monster stars. The strange shapes taken by the clouds are a result of the huge amount of blazing radiation emitted by these massive, hot stars. The gas and dust of the nebula hide huge baby stars in the nebula from telescopes observing in visible light, as well as adding to the hazy appearance of the image.

Distance from Earth: 8,000 light years

This image combines observations performed through three filters in visible light (B, V, R) with the 1.5-meter Danish telescope at the European Southern Observatory's La Silla Observatory in Chile.

Credit: ESO/IDA/Danish 1.5 m/ R. Gendler, U.G. Jørgensen, J. Skottfelt, K. Harpsøe
Release Date: April 12, 2010

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