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June 2025, 2025 Charles Lillo June 2025, 2025 Charles Lillo

Star Formation and Dust in the Chamaeleon Complex

The Chamaeleon Complex is a rich star-forming region located approximately 450 to 650 light-years away in the southern constellation Chamaeleon. This wide-field image captures several of its most photogenic features, including dark molecular clouds, reflection nebulae, and young stellar objects. The region is known for its active stellar nurseries and intricate interstellar dust structures.

To the right lies the barred spiral galaxy NGC 3620, situated at a distance of 59 million light-years. Just left of it is IC 2631, a reflection nebula illuminated by the hot star HD 97300. To the left side of the field is Cederblad 111, which glows with a characteristic blue hue as starlight scatters off fine dust particles. Embedded within Ced 111 are Herbig-Haro objects HH 49 and HH 50—bright shock fronts formed by jets of gas from young stars interacting with surrounding material. Just beneath Ced 111 is the dark nebula GN 11.07.3, notable for its deep reddish tones and lack of a clearly identifiable illuminating source.

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