SUNSET: 
0
Photographer:
Sergio Eguivar
Location of Photo:
Alberti, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Date/Time of photo:
December 2025
Equipment:
QSI58WS, Orion Optics UK 6" f5, SkyWatcher NEQ6
Description:
RCW 36 (also designated as Gum 20) is an emission nebula containing an open cluster in the constellation Vela. This HII region is part of a larger-scale star-forming complex known as the Vela Molecular Ridge (VMR), a collection of molecular clouds in the Milky Way that contain multiple sites of ongoing star-formation activity. RCW 36 is one of the closest massive star formation region to our Solar System, at a distance of approximately 2300 light years or 700 parsecs. The nebula spans over a diameter of 1.6 light years.
