Emission Nebula RCW 49 with Westerlund 2 in the constellation Carina

RCW 49 is a compact star-forming region whose gas masses are ionized by the numerous hot stars of the small star cluster Westerlund 2 on the right edge of the nebula. With a total mass of around 37000 solar masses, Westerlund 2 is the second most massive open star cluster known in our galaxy. The age of the very young cluster is only between 1 and 2 million years.

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Date:08.-10.06.2023
Optics: Planewave CDK 12.5 with Televue 0.8x reducer
Aperture: 318 mm
Focal Length: 2030 mm
Camera: Alccd12
Exposure: 18 x 600 s
Location: Chamaeleon Observatory, Onjala Lodge, Namibia
Processing: PixInsight, Photoshop
Diameter:30 light years (RCW 49)
Distance:13,500 light years
annotated image

image field in the sky