Small Magellanic Cloud
noun
: a pair of small galaxies that is located 200,000 light-years away from the Milky Way and is visible within 25 degrees of the south celestial pole
Scientists using the Spitzer Space Telescope claimed to have found the glowing traces of the universe's first generation of stars. Roughly 5,000 baby stars were discovered in the Small Magellanic Cloud, and spectrographic imagery captured a young star fleeing a giant black hole that had already swallowed the star's twin; at its present rate of speed, the star will eventually leave the Milky Way …—
Bill Armstrong
Bill Armstrongcalled also Magellanic Cloud
Examples of Small Magellanic Cloud in a Sentence
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Using tips from the star-tracking Gaia spacecraft, scientists examined the motions of massive stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) to find it is being ripped apart by the gravitational influence of its larger counterpart, the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC).
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 11 Apr. 2025
Located about 200,000 light-years from Earth, the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) is a dwarf galaxy home to active star formation.
—Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 31 Mar. 2025
As one of the Milky Way’s closest and brightest galactic neighbors, residing only about 200,000 light-years from Earth, the Small Magellanic Cloud offers an opportunity to study phenomena that are otherwise difficult to examine in more distant galaxies.
—Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 19 Mar. 2025
At present, Han says there’s no evidence for such a massive black hole in the Small Magellanic Cloud, the LMC’s companion galaxy, located some 200,000 light years away.
—Bruce Dorminey, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025
The high-energy flare was spotted on May 27, 2024 coming from a star system in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), which is a neighboring satellite of our Milky Way galaxy.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 20 Feb. 2025
Researchers from Kyushu University and Osaka Metropolitan University essentially documented the dance of the Small Magellanic Cloud.
—Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 20 Feb. 2025
The team speculates that this could be possible due to interactions between the Large Magellanic Cloud, the Milky Way, and the Small Magellanic Cloud, which may be influencing its gas distribution.
—Victoria Corless, Space.com, 11 Feb. 2025
This new image from the James Webb Space Telescope features the young star cluster NGC 602, surrounded by the varied clouds of a nebula, near the outskirts of the Small Magellanic Cloud, about 200,000 light-years from Earth.
—Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 24 Dec. 2024
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Robert Lea, Space.com, 11 Apr. 2025
Located about 200,000 light-years from Earth, the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) is a dwarf galaxy home to active star formation.
—Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 31 Mar. 2025
As one of the Milky Way’s closest and brightest galactic neighbors, residing only about 200,000 light-years from Earth, the Small Magellanic Cloud offers an opportunity to study phenomena that are otherwise difficult to examine in more distant galaxies.
—Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 19 Mar. 2025
At present, Han says there’s no evidence for such a massive black hole in the Small Magellanic Cloud, the LMC’s companion galaxy, located some 200,000 light years away.
—Bruce Dorminey, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025
The high-energy flare was spotted on May 27, 2024 coming from a star system in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), which is a neighboring satellite of our Milky Way galaxy.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 20 Feb. 2025
Researchers from Kyushu University and Osaka Metropolitan University essentially documented the dance of the Small Magellanic Cloud.
—Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 20 Feb. 2025
The team speculates that this could be possible due to interactions between the Large Magellanic Cloud, the Milky Way, and the Small Magellanic Cloud, which may be influencing its gas distribution.
—Victoria Corless, Space.com, 11 Feb. 2025
This new image from the James Webb Space Telescope features the young star cluster NGC 602, surrounded by the varied clouds of a nebula, near the outskirts of the Small Magellanic Cloud, about 200,000 light-years from Earth.
—Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 24 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Small Magellanic Cloud.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Small%20Magellanic%20Cloud. Accessed 30 Apr. 2025.
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