Near-IR imaging of Galactic massive clusters: Westerlund 2

Abstract

Context.Most stars in the Galaxy were formed in massive clusters. To understand nature's favorite mode of star formation and the initial stages of the life of most stars one needs to characterize the youngest and resolved massive clusters in the Milky Way. Unfortunately young massive clusters are challenging observational targets as they are rare, hence found at large distances, are still embedded in their parental molecular cloud, and are swamped by relatively bright nebulae.