Free Astronomy Magazine July-August 2025

JULY-AUGUST 2025 other to form molecules. Some, such as Circinus West, are so dense that light cannot pass through, giving them a dark, mottled appearance and earning them the name dark nebulae. The cloud’s flourishing pop- ulation of young stars has offered astronomers a wealth of insight into the processes driving star formation and molecular cloud evolution. This image was captured with the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera (DECam), mounted on the U.S. National Sci- ence Foundation Víctor M. Blanco 4- meter telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of NSF NOIRLab. It showcases the western portion of the larger Circinus molecular cloud, by NOIRLab Josie Fenske A dark nebula harboring a nest of newly formed stars T his winding, shadowy form, ac- centuated by a densely-packed starry background, is the Circi- nus West molecular cloud — a re- gion rich in gas and dust and known for its host of newly formed stars. Molecular Clouds, the cradles of star formation, are interstellar clouds that are so dense and cold that atoms within them bond with each