Astronomers have captured a stunning image resembling a Christmas wreath, featuring young stars lighting up dense clouds of dust in the Small Magellanic Cloud, a nearby galaxy to the Milky Way. The composite image combines X-ray data from NASA’s Chandra Observatory and infrared data from the James Webb Space Telescope.
The star cluster NGC 602 is located on the outskirts of the Small Magellanic Cloud, approximately 200,000 light-years away. This environment provides a glimpse into the early days of star formation, as it contains fewer heavy elements than the Sun and most stars in the Milky Way.
Young massive stars in the cluster are sending high-energy X-rays into interstellar space, illuminating the surrounding dust clouds. These X-rays are powered by winds flowing from the young stars, creating a dark ring-like outline around the wreath shape.
The “Christmas tree cluster” NGC 2264 is also available, featuring a group of young stars between one and five million years old. This image combines Chandra data with optical data captured by astrophotographer Michael Clow.
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, manages the Chandra program, while the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory’s Chandra X-ray Center controls science operations from Cambridge, Massachusetts, and flight operations from Burlington, Massachusetts.
Source: https://scitechdaily.com/nasa-reveals-cosmic-christmas-tree-and-celestial-wreath-illuminating-star-birth