The Eta Carinae nebula, NGC 3372

The Eta Carinae nebula, NGC3372, also known as the Keyhole Nebula, as seen by the Curtis Schmidt telescope at the Cerro Tololo Interamerican Observatory in 1975. We also have an interesting narrow-band emission line image of this nebula. This gaseous bright nebula surrounds the peculiar variable star Eta Carinae, with overlying clouds of dark material, at a distance from Earth of about 9000 light-years. North is at the top.