Magellanic Clouds

The Magellanic Clouds are two irregularly shaped, dwarf galaxies called the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). They are satellite galaxies orbiting our Milky Way Galaxy and are visible from the Southern Hemisphere as faint, cloudy patches in the night sky. Located about 160,000 and 200,000 light-years away respectively, they contain numerous stars, nebulae, and star-forming regions. These clouds provide valuable insights into galaxy formation and interaction dynamics due to their proximity and ongoing gravitational relationship with the Milky Way.