This open cluster of stars is
located about 5,000 light years away towards the constellation of Vela.
Looking there will not normally reveal most of the stars in this cluster,
though. The reason is that the open cluster is so young that it is still
shrouded in thick dust that absorbs visible light. This dust typically
accompanies the gas that condenses to form young stars. When viewed in
infrared light, however, the star cluster in RCW38 is revealed, because
dust is less effective at absorbing infrared light. The above photograph
was one of the first ever taken with the new Infrared Spectrometer and
Array Camera (ISAAC) affixed to the 8.2-meter Very Large Telescope.