The Running Chicken Nebula | ESO

The Running Chicken Nebula | ESO

IC 2944, also known as the Running Chicken Nebula, the Lambda Centauri Nebula or the λ Centauri Nebula, is an open cluster with an associated emission nebula found in the constellation Centaurus, near the star λ Centauri. This image also shows a group of thick clouds of dust known as the Thackeray globules silhouetted against the pale pink glowing gas of the nebula. These globules are under fierce bombardment from the ultraviolet radiation from nearby hot young stars. They are both being eroded away and also fragmenting, rather like lumps of butter dropped onto a hot frying pan. It is likely that Thackeray’s globules will be destroyed before they can collapse and form new stars. 

Distance: 6,500 light years

This intriguing view of a spectacular stellar nursery IC 2944 was originally released to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT) in 2013. 

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Release Date: May 23, 2013

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