Hubble Snaps Stunning Image Of UV Star Cluster Unleashing A Torrent Of Radiation
The star cluster, also known as NGC 346, is located within the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), one of the Milky Way’s closest neighbors. Hubble’s unique ability to capture ultraviolet light enabled it to snap an image of the star cluster, whose hot stars are unleashing “a torrent of radiation and energetic outflows.”
According to NASA, the radiation and outflows erode the denser portions of gas and dust in the surrounding nebula, N66, allowing for dozens of hot, blue, and high-mass stars to shine within NGC 346. Astronomers are of the belief that the cluster contains more than half of the known high-mass stars in the whole SMC.
This is not the first time Hubble has captured images of NGC 346. However, the new view showcases the cluster in ultraviolet light, along with some visible-light data (as seen in the image above). Scientists use ultraviolet light to better understand star formation and evolution. Therefore, with Hubble being the only space telescope with the capability to make sensitive, ultraviolet observations with its combined sharp resolution and position above Earth’s UV-blocking atmosphere, it is still quite valuable to the scientific community.
Hubble has been capturing images of deep space for over three decades now, helping scientists to gain a greater understanding of how galaxies form and evolve. According to NASA, the latest images of NGC 346 were captured to learn more about how star formation shapes the interstellar medium, which is the gas distributed throughout “seemingly empty space,” in “a low-metallicity galaxy” such as the SMC.
