Thanks to the capabilities of the VISTA telescope, part of the telescope array of the European Southern Observatory (ESO), astronomers have for the first time succeeded in capturing the most detailed infrared photograph of the Orion A molecular cloud to date.
Orion A is the closest star forming region to the Sun. The distance from our planet to this object is about 1350 light years. Astronomers were able to identify the presence of numerous young stars and other objects that were previously hidden by dust clouds.
This image is just one of the entire VISION survey of the sky. The image was taken with the VISTA infrared wide-angle telescope, one of the most powerful devices in the ESO observatory.
The most prominent object in the photo is the famous Orion Nebula or Monsieur 42 on the left side of the image. For astronomers, however, the most valuable are young stellar objects and galaxy clusters scattered throughout the image. Experts are confident that their detection will allow a completely new look at the processes of star formation in the Orion A.
Sources: ESO
