A Cosmic Master of Disguise: Chamaeleon Cloud IC 2631 | ESO

A Cosmic Master of Disguise: Chamaeleon Cloud IC 2631 | ESO

This image shows the Chamaeleon Cloud, or IC 2631. It is a reflection nebula made of dust clouds that reflect the light emitted from nearby stars. The nebula is mainly illuminated by one of the youngest, most massive and brightest stars in its neighborhood, HD 97300, visible to the center-right of the image. The Chamaeleon Cloud is in fact the brightest nebula in the Chamaeleon Complex, a vast region of gas and dust clouds––much larger than what this image shows––where numerous newborn and still-forming stars live.

The cloud you see here is packed full of star-making material: gas and dust. At optical wavelengths this region contains dark patches where dust completely blocks light from background sources. However, this image was captured in infrared light, which can pass through dust almost unimpeded, allowing scientists to peer into the core of this cloud.

Bigger or smaller, a lot of bright dots crowd this image, making the dark background almost disappear. They are stars of different colors; white, yellow and reddish. However, there is something more too: some very bright stars and some brown clouds cohabit the center of this astronomical picture. The brightest star is to the right of the clouds, and is surrounded by a blue/magenta halo.

In the southern hemisphere, this cloud is visible in the sky for most of the year, and in this image, captured by the European Southern Observatory’s Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA), you can admire it in infrared light.

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

Release Date: July 17, 2023

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