NGC 3576

NGC 3576 commonly called the "Statue of Liberty" - an emission nebula (H II region) located in the constellation Carina. This nebula is located about 9,000 light-years from Earth in the Sagittarius Arm of the Milky Way. It is a separate part of the RCW 57 nebula complex. It is one of the fainter nebulae of the Sagittarius Arm of the Milky Way. John Herschel assigned several NGC numbers when classifying this object, because during its observations he saw only a few nebula-like spots, hence it finally received 6 different numbers: NGC 3576, NGC 3579, NGC 3581, NGC 3582, NGC 3584 and NGC 3586. Currently, the most commonly used name by astronomers for the entire nebula is NGC 3576. NGC 3576's shapes are the result of the formation of new stars in the nebula. Young, massive stars are the source of powerful winds forming curved columns. Hydrogen, sulfur and oxygen, excited by intense ultraviolet radiation, give the nebula characteristic colors in this case in the HST bands. The glow of the nebula also outlines the silhouettes of dense clouds of dust and gas. The NGC 3576 nebula is a potential site of new star formation, as indicated by the collapsing dark clouds that form globules of concentrated material. One of the interesting features in this exposure is the open galaxy cluster [DBS 2003] 62, located in the lower right corner, about which little is known at present.