Thackeray's Globules, as they are known today, were first discovered in the IC 2944 nebula by A. D. Thackeray in 1950. Even today, little is known about their formation, but they are known to be closely associated with areas of star formation called 'HII regions' (due to the presence of hydrogen).
The IC 2944 nebula is located 5,900 light-years distant in the constellation Centaurus. The two large globules in this image are around 1.4 light-years long, and together they contain around 15 solar masses of material.
