ESO’s infrared VISTA telescope

Colourful clouds of star-forming gas and dust host stellar nurseries

23 September 2019 Astronomy Now

A massive young star in a molecular cloud in Scorpius features a surrounding disc of dusty material and a supersonic jet blowing out into space, both contrary to expectations for high-mass suns.

ESO’s VISTA captures detailed look at galactic neighbour

15 September 2019 Astronomy Now

The European Southern Observatory’s VISTA telescope captures a stunning near-infrared view of the Large Magellanic Cloud in a survey to characterize the dwarf galaxy’s structure, stellar population and dynamics.

VISTA captures huge Carina Nebula in all its infrared glory

29 August 2018 Astronomy Now

The European Observatory’s VISTA telescope captured this remarkably detailed view of the spectacular Carina Nebula, showing the vast star-forming region in infrared light with countless suns blazing through thin clouds of gas and dust, including the gigantic Eta Carinae binary system.

Remains of ancient globular clusters found at the heart of the Milky Way

12 October 2016 Astronomy Now

Ancient variable stars, of a type known as RR Lyrae, have been discovered in the centre of the Milky Way for the first time. RR Lyrae stars typically reside in ancient stellar populations over 10 billion years old, such as globular clusters. These stars may even be the remains of the most massive and oldest surviving star cluster of the entire Milky Way.