NGC 3576

NGC 3576
Emission nebula
A red emission nebula with a dark central structure resembling a standing figure with one arm raised
NGC 3576, also known as the Statue of Liberty Nebula
Observation data: J2000.0 epoch
Right ascension11h 11m 53.2s
Declination−61° 18′ 26″
Distance7,800 to 9,800 ly   (2,400 to 3,000 pc)
ConstellationCarina
DesignationsGAL 291.30-00.7, RCW 57A, BRAN 348A, GUM 38a
See also: Lists of nebulae

NGC 3576 (also known as the Statue of Liberty Nebula) is a bright emission nebula and star-forming region in the southern constellation of Carina. It was discovered by John Frederick William Herschel on 16 March 1834. Distance estimates for this complex range from 7.8 to 9.8 thousand light-years.

Observations

This complex is located near the galactic plane along the Carina arm of the Milky Way galaxy. It is approximately 100 light years across and is located near the Eta Carinae nebula, forming the western section of RCW 57. NGC 3576 consists of a giant, star-forming molecular cloud with a luminous H II region positioned just outside. In the infrared, this is one of the brightest H II regions in the galaxy. It is expanding into the molecular cloud and appears to be triggering further star formation. Most of the ionization is believed to be due to two O-type stars, HD 97319 and HD 97484, and two B-type stars, HD 97499 and CPD–60◦2641.

Many of the brightest stars in this formation are still enshrouded in their natal cocoons of gas and dust. A majority of the stars display an infrared excess from the surrounding circumstellar disks. Star formation appears to be progressing in a direction from the northeast to the southwest, with the youngest stars in the latter locale. A very young cluster of massive stars with 130 identified members is embedded deep within the molecular cloud.

References

  1. 1 2 Pavlinsky, M.; et al. (May 2022). "SRG/ART-XC all-sky X-ray survey: Catalog of sources detected during the first year". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 661. id. A38. arXiv:2107.05879. Bibcode:2022A&A...661A..38P. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/202141770.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Persi, P.; et al. (February 1994). "The young stellar population associated with the HII region NGC 3576". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 282: 474–484. Bibcode:1994A&A...282..474P.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Damineli, A.; et al. (October 2002). Crowther, Paul A. (ed.). "The Stellar Population of NGC 3576". Hot Star Workshop III: The Earliest Stages of Massive Star Birth. ASP Conference Proceedings. 267. San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific: 359. Bibcode:2002ASPC..267..359D. ISBN 1-58381-107-9.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: periodical has ISBN (link)
  4. ↑ "NGC 3576", SIMBAD, Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg, retrieved 2025-03-13.
  5. ↑ "NGC 3576: The Statue of Liberty Nebula". Astronomy Picture of the Day. NASA. 20 July 2026. Retrieved 2 August 2026.
  6. ↑ Seligman, Courtney. "NGC Objects: NGC 3550 - 3599". Celestial Atlas. Retrieved 2025-03-14.
  7. ↑ "APOD: 2008 March 26 - The NGC 3576 Nebula". apod.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2021-02-11.
  8. 1 2 García-Rojas, Jorge; et al. (August 2004). "Chemical Abundances of the Galactic H II Region NGC 3576 Derived from Very Large Telescope Echelle Spectrophotometry". The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. 153 (2): 501–522. arXiv:astro-ph/0404123. Bibcode:2004ApJS..153..501G. doi:10.1086/421909.
  9. ↑ Persi, P.; et al. (1987). Appenzeller, I.; Jordan, C. (eds.). "Star formation in the southern complex region NGC 3576". Circumstellar Matter, Proceedings of the 122nd Symposium of the IAU Held in Heidelberg, F.R.G., June 23-27, 1986. 122: 93–94. Bibcode:1987IAUS..122...93P.
  10. ↑ Maercker, M.; et al. (April 2006). "L-band (3.5 μm) IR-excess in massive star formation. II. RCW 57/NGC 3576". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 450 (1): 253–263. arXiv:astro-ph/0512362. Bibcode:2006A&A...450..253M. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20054372.
  11. ↑ Purcell, C. R.; et al. (September 2009). "Multi-generation massive star-formation in NGC 3576". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 504 (1): 139–159. arXiv:0909.1223. Bibcode:2009A&A...504..139P. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/200811358.

Further reading