Small Magellanic Cloud, optical image. The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) dwarf galaxy is a satellite galaxy of our Milky Way. It contains numerous emis

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Small Magellanic Cloud, optical image. The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) dwarf galaxy is a satellite galaxy of our Milky Way. It contains numerous emission nebulae, which are clouds of gas that glow red as the hydrogen gas they contain is ionised by radiation from nearby hot young stars. The bright, round object at upper left is the globular star cluster 47 Tucanae. The SMC lies about 185,000 light years from Earth, in the constellation Tucana.

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Size: 4054px × 4583px
Photo credit: © ROBERT GENDLER/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: 47, astronomical, astronomy, astrophysical, astrophysics, cloud, clouds, cluster, dust, dwarf, emission, galactic, galaxy, gas, globular, magellanic, nebula, nebulae, optical, small, smc, space, star, stars, stellar, telescope, tucana, tucanae, universe