NGC 346 / NGC 330 / NGC 292

by Emmanuel Valin

Objects in field: Small Magellanic Cloud, NGC 292, NGC 330, NGC 346, IC 1611

Equipment: TEC APO140ED, ZWO ASI6200MM Pro

Integration: 20h 55m

NGC 346 (top right of the image) is a large, very active open cluster located in the Small Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf satellite galaxy of the Milky Way. It lies in the direction of the constellation Tucana, at a distance of about 210,000 light-years from Earth. This object is best known as a very intense star-forming region, where many young massive stars are born. It is surrounded by bright gas…