Zooming in on aging double star IRAS 08544-4431

This video takes the viewer deep into a spectacular region of the southern Milky Way in the constellation of Vela (The Sails). We pass many interesting objects, including star formation regions and the blue filaments of a supernova remnant, before closing in on the faint star IRAS 08544-4431. This aging object is surrounded by a dusty disc that has been clearly resolved for the first time by the Very Large Telescope Interferometer at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile.