Lagoon Nebula Revealed in Dramatic ESO Image [VIDEO]

The European Space Observatory's VLT Survey Telescope (VST) has captured a brilliant image of the Lagoon Nebula from its perch in the Atacama Desert in Chile.

Located 5,000 light years away from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius, the Lagoon Nebula, also known as Messier 8, is a giant cloud of gas and dust about 100 light years across. The nebula is generating intensely bright young stars and is home to stellar clusters as well.

The size of the new image is as a testament to the size of the Lagoon Nebula itself. The VST image is 16,000 pixels and is viewable here as a fully "zoomable" image, where viewers can "explore the many nooks and crannies of this fascinating object," the European Space Observatory (ESO) said in a statement.

The Lagoon Nebula was first discovered in the mid 1600s and is one of only two star-forming nebulae that are visible (just faintly) with the naked eye.

This VLT image of the nebula was not taken deliberately. The telescope is carrying out a larger survey of a huge swath of the Milky Way as part of an ongoing imaging survey called VPHAS+, according to an ESO news release. The nebula just happened to be in the VLT's field of view, which led to the capture of the image.

VPHAS+ is one of just a handful of astronomical surveys that are observing the cosmos in visible light.

Among the revelations brought forth by the VPHAS+ survey are never-before-seen star clusters and one of the best maps of the central Milky Way region.

The below video, Diving Into the Lagoon Nebula, was publshed by the ESO in 2009.