                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

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                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                2024 April 25

                       NGC 604: Giant Stellar Nursery
                     Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

   Explanation: Located some 3 million light-years away in the arms of
   nearby spiral galaxy M33, giant stellar nursery NGC 604 is about 1,300
   light-years across. That's nearly 100 times the size of the Milky Way's
   Orion Nebula, the closest large star forming region to planet Earth. In
   fact, among the star forming regions within the Local Group of
   galaxies, NGC 604 is second in size only to 30 Doradus, also known as
   the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Cavernous bubbles
   and cavities in NGC 604 fill this stunning infrared image from the
   James Webb Space Telescope's NIRCam. They are carved out by energetic
   stellar winds from the region's more than 200 hot, massive, young
   stars, all still in early stages of their lives.

              Tomorrow's picture: Regulus and the Dwarf Galaxy
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

