The ``Papillon'' nebula: a compact H bt II blob in the LMC resolved by it HST

Abstract

We present high spatial resolution HST imaging of the LMC compact {H ii} region N159-5. This high excitation blob is revealed to be a ``papillon'' or butterfly-shaped ionized nebula with the ``wings'' separated by { ~ },2''.3 (0.6 pc). Two subarcsecond features resembling a ``smoke ring'' and a ``globule'' are detected in the wings, the origin of which is briefly discussed. N159-5 may represent a new type of {H ii} region in the Magellanic Clouds overlooked so far because of insufficient spatial resolution. Our images also show a strikingly turbulent medium around the Papillon in the giant {H ii} region N 159, which manifests itself by a large number of subarcsecond filaments, arcs, ridges, and fronts carved in the ionized gas by the stellar winds from massive stars in the N 159 complex. Based on observations with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555.}} blob in the LMC resolved by HST