The Tarantula Nebula is a giant star-forming region within the Large Magellanic Cloud (a dwarf galaxy gravitationally bound to our Milky Way galaxy). Massive stars are being formed within it at very high rates and in close proximity. The Tarantula Nebula is over a thousand light years in diameter, and is about 180,00 light years from Earth. If it were only 1500 light years away it would take up half the sky!