The RCW 36 nebula: A cosmic hawk and its baby stars

This image, taken with ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), seems to have captured a cosmic hawk as it spans its wings. While the dark clouds in the middle of the image make up the head and body of the bird of prey, the filaments extending away from the body to the left and right compose its wings. Below it is a mesmerizing blue nebula with massive newly born stars, whose intense radiation make the gas around them glow brightly.