Chamaeleon I is a large star forming region in the constellation Chamaeleon. Within it lie immense clouds of dust and gas so dense that they obscure the background stars, but intense star forming activity is taking place within them. These dense clouds of dust and gas clump together due to the effect of gravity eventually reaching pressures so high that hydrogen atoms fuse setting off an atomic reaction and giving birth to a new star.
The Chamaeleon I molecular cloud is host to about 300 recently formed young stars, and is one of the closest star forming regions to Earth, at approximately 500 light years away.
This image was shot with my telescope from the pristine skies of the El Leoncito Astronomical Complex in San Juan, Argentina.
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