TheTarantula Nebula is more than 1,000 light-years across -a giant emission nebula within ou neighboring galax the Large Magellanic Cloud.Inside this cosmic arachnid lies a central young cluster of massivestars, cataloged a R136, whose intense radiation and strong windshave helped energize the nebular glow and shape the spidery filaments.In thi impressive color mosaicof images from th Wide-Field Imagercamera on ESO's 2.2 meter telescope at La Silla Observatory, otheryoung star clusters can be seen still within th nebula's grasp.Also notable among the denizensof the Tarantula zone are severa dark cloudsinvading the nebula's outer limits as well asthe dense clusterof stars NGC 2100 at the extreme left edge of thepicture.The small but expanding remnant ofsupernova 1987a, the closest supernovain modern history,lies just off the lower right corner of the field.The rich mosaic's field of view covers an area on the skyabout the size ofthe full moon in the souther constellation Dorado.
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