VFTS 102: the fastest rotating star

This view shows part of the stellar nursery called the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a small neighbour of the Milky Way. At the centre lies the brilliant star VFTS 102 This view includes both visible-light and infrared images from the Wide Field Imager at the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope at La Silla and the 4.1-metre infrared VISTA telescope at Paranal. VFTS 102 is the most rapidly rotating star ever found.

Credit:

ESO/M.-R. Cioni/VISTA Magellanic Cloud survey. Acknowledgment: Cambridge Astronomical Survey Unit

About the Image

Id:eso1147a
Type:Observation
Release date:5 December 2011, 15:00
Related releases:eso1147
Size:1284 x 1284 px

About the Object

Name:VFTS 102
Type:Local Universe : Star : Spectral Type : O
Distance:150000 light years
Category:Stars

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