Chile telescope captures image of star-forming region at heart of Milky Way

A powerful telescope in Chile has captured a detailed new image of the centre of the Milky Way, released on Wednesday by the European Southern Observatory.The image focuses on a vast region of cold gas stretching more than 650 light-years across. The gas and dust clouds lie around the supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy. This area is known as the Central Molecular Zone. It is a key region where new stars are formed. The image was taken by the ALMA antenna network in the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on Earth. According to the observatory, it is the largest image ever produced by ALMA. The region is usually invisible to the human eye. But the new image reveals it in unusual detail.This image can help scientists understand how stars are born in extreme conditions. The findings could also improve understanding of how galaxies evolve.Such observations can also help answer key questions about the life cycle of stars and the history of galaxies.