One of the largest in the sky: Interstellar gas cloud found in the neighborhood
Stars and planets are formed from so-called molecular clouds. Now, using a new method, a particularly close one has been discovered and christened "Eos".
This is what "Eos" would look like in the night sky if we could see it
(Image: NatureLifePhoto/Flickr (New York City Skyline), Burkhart et al. 2025)
An international research group has discovered a potentially star-forming gas cloud that is so close to our solar system that it would be one of the largest structures in the night sky – if it could be seen. This has been made public by the US-American Rutgers University and explains that the so-called molecular cloud has been christened “Eos” – after the Greek goddess of dawn. The structure is a huge sphere of hydrogen that was detected directly in the far-ultraviolet spectrum. If it could be seen with the naked eye, it would be many times larger than the full moon in the night sky.
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Molecular clouds are structures of interstellar gas that consist mainly of molecular hydrogen. However, these birthplaces of stars also contain other substances, such as carbon monoxide, explains the US university. Because they are much easier to detect using radio and infrared telescopes, they have mainly been discovered and researched in this way to date. The discovery now presented, however, is based on the direct detection of hydrogen itself in the far-ultraviolet spectrum. The molecules glow in this spectrum, “the cloud really glows in the dark”, explains research leader Blakesley Burkhart.
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The discovery of the molecular cloud, which is only 300 light years away, is so exciting because the formation and development of such a structure can now be studied directly, says Burkhart. It can be used to study how a galaxy transforms dust and gas into stars and planets. In addition, the observation method on which the discovery is based could improve our understanding of the interstellar medium and reveal other previously hidden gas clouds. The study itself has now been published in the scientific journal Nature Astronomy.
(mho)
