NGC 3576
Emission nebula in the constellation Carina
title: "NGC 3576" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["carina–sagittarius-arm", "ngc-objects", "emission-nebulae", "carina-(constellation)", "star-forming-regions"] description: "Emission nebula in the constellation Carina" topic_path: "general/carina-sagittarius-arm" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NGC_3576" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Emission nebula in the constellation Carina ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox nebula"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | NGC 3576 |
| image | File:ESO-NGC 3576-phot-17b-08-normal.jpg |
| image_scale | 1.4 |
| caption | NGC 3576 |
| credit | |
| type | emission |
| type2 | |
| epoch | J2000.0 |
| ra | |
| dec | |
| dist_ly | 2.4 kpc to 3.0 kpc |
| dist_pc | 2,400 to 3,000 |
| appdia | |
| constellation | Carina |
| names | GAL 291.30-00.7, RCW 57A, BRAN 348A, GUM 38a |
| :: |
| name = NGC 3576 | image = File:ESO-NGC 3576-phot-17b-08-normal.jpg | image_scale = 1.4 | alt = | caption = NGC 3576 | credit = | type = emission | type2 = | epoch = J2000.0 | subtype = | class = | ra = | dec = | dist_ly = 2.4 kpc to 3.0 kpc | dist_pc = 2,400 to 3,000 | dist_z = | appmag_v = | appdia = | size_v = | constellation = Carina | radius_ly = | radius_pc = | dimensions = | absmag_v = | notes = | names = GAL 291.30-00.7, RCW 57A, BRAN 348A, GUM 38a
NGC 3576 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 2.4 kpc to 3.0 kpc.
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.
Gallery
NGC3576Location.png|The location of NGC 3576 (circled in red) Statue of Liberty Nebula final.jpg|NGC 3576 in Hubble Palette by amateur astronomer Mark Johnston
References
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::