This Hubble Space Telescope image shows an in-depth view of NGC330, an open star cluster located in the Small Magellanic Cloud.The Hubble Space Telescope captured a stunning view of a distant star group, which is filled with stars that sparkle red, white, and blue. It was revealed just in time to celebrate the Fourth of July U.S holiday.NASA and the European Space Agency released the photo on July 2. It shows NGC330, an open star cluster located approximately 180,000 light years away in the Small Magellanic Cloud. This dwarf satellite galaxy is in the constellation Tucana.NASA and ESA officials stated in an image description that star clusters are formed from one primordial cloud of gas or dust. This means that all stars within them are approximately the same age. This makes them valuable natural laboratories for astronomers who want to study how stars form and evolve.Related: The Most Amazing Hubble Space Telescope DiscoverysThis Hubble Space Telescope image of NGC 330, a brilliant open star cluster located in the Small Magellanic Cloud, shows the complete view. It is based on archived observations that were taken in 2018. (Image credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA J. Kalirai, A. MiloneThis image was created by astronomers using archived Hubble Wide Field Camera 3 observations in 2018. It supports two studies that aim to understand how star clusters develop and how large stars can become before they explode as supernovae.ESA officials stated that the most striking object in this image was actually the small star cluster located in the lower left corner. It is surrounded by a nebula filled with ionised hydrogen and dust (red)." Separate image description from ESA officials. The cluster, named Galfor 1, was found in Hubble's archive data in 2018. It was used to create the latest Hubble image.Galfor 1 scientists will need to wait for NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to observe it. It will then be possible to determine if its surroundings have a bow shock feature.Hubble's artifact is the criss-crossing patterns of these brilliant stars. Officials at ESA called them diffraction spikes. They form when starlight reflects off four vanes that support Hubble's secondary mirror.Although Hubble's view of NGC 330 might add some sparkle to Fourth of July celebrations, American astronauts in orbit have not had the same luck. They will be working over the weekend to prepare a visiting SpaceX Dragon cargo vessel for its return to Earth on Tuesday, July 6.The Hubble Space Telescope, which was launched in 1990, captured incredible photos of the universe for more than 30 years. NASA is working with NASA to activate a backup computer to restore Hubble's health.Tariq Malik can be reached at tmalik@space.com, or on Twitter @tariqjmalik. Follow us @Spacedotcom on Facebook and Instagram.
