Starburst Galaxy NGC 1808
Depicts: NGC 1808, IRAS 05059-3734
Copyright: Jim Flood, an amateur astronomer affiliated with Sperry Observatory at Union College in New Jersey, and Max Mutchler, a member of the Space Telescope Science Institute staff who volunteered to work with Jim
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This image, taken by WFPC2, provides a closer look at the
flurry of star birth at the galaxy's core. The star clusters (blue) can
be seen (and many more are likely obscured) amid thick lanes of gas and
dust. This image shows that stars are often born in compact clusters
within star bursts, and that dense gas and dust heavily obscures the
star burst region. The brightest knot of star birth seen here is
probably a giant cluster of stars, about 100 light-years in diameter, at
the very center of the galaxy. The other star clusters are about 10 to
50 light-years in diameter. The entire star burst region shown here is
about 3,000 light-years across.
Last Update: 1 September 2019
