Chandra Release - August 11, 2026

Visual Description: Tarantula Nebula, 30 Doradus

This release features three images of the Tarantula Nebula, or 30 Doradus, a star-forming region of the Large Magellanic Cloud. Each image represents a different wavelength of light, presented in a different color. When layered atop one another, like sheets of colored cellophane, they combine to produce a vibrant and informative singular image.

The base layer of the nearly square, combined image, features a blanket of wispy blue clouds against a black backdrop. These clouds represent hot gas observed by NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory. This layer reveals that gas has been blown from the surfaces of young, massive stars, and heated to millions of degrees by shock waves.

The second layer is a rectangular image cutting diagonally across the cloudy blue square, tilted from our upper left down toward our lower right. This layer features roiling red clouds and tiny, gleaming, red specks. These are swaths of cool, ingredient-rich dust, and scores of young stars. This red layer represents infrared data collected by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.

The third layer is a tilted square, or diamond-shaped image, with its points touching the edges of the big blue base layer. Here, curling, sweeping tendrils of warm hydrogen gas swirl around the frame in shades of green. This layer represents data captured by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.

In the center of the combined image, the three translucent layers overlap, resulting in a technicolor marvel; an image of intermingled blue, red, and green clouds that blend to include lively shades of fiery orange, golden yellow, and deep purple.