Large Magellanic Cloud
noun
: the larger of a small cluster of galaxies that is located 200,000 light-years away from the Milky Way and is visible within 25 degrees of the south celestial pole
The Large Magellanic Cloud, a small satellite galaxy to our own Milky Way, is known to be poor in metals compared with the Milky Way and other galaxies, so any star that condensed in it would likely be deficient in metals, and that could make it blue.—
Dietrick E. Thomsen
Dietrick E. Thomsencalled also Magellanic Cloud
Examples of Large Magellanic Cloud in a Sentence
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Exactly which of these scenarios ultimately occurs could be governed by the masses of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and the Triangulum galaxy, two galactic players in the Local Group.
—Elizabeth Gamillo, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 June 2025
One confounding factor comes from two other LG galaxies: M33, a satellite galaxy, and the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC).
—Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 3 June 2025
According to this research, our galaxy is almost certain to merge with the Large Magellanic Cloud over the next 2 billion years.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 2 June 2025
Its location, though, is suspicious: it’s located just three degrees from the edge of the Large Magellanic Cloud (or LMC), a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 17 Apr. 2025
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
The Milky Way has numerous dwarf galaxy satellites of its own, for instance, the most famous of which are known as the Large Magellanic Cloud and the Small Magellanic Cloud.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 24 Mar. 2025
The other half seemed to be linked to a supermassive black hole at the center of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a neighboring dwarf galaxy thought to be orbiting the Milky Way.
—Margherita Bassi, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Mar. 2025
The galaxy next door to the Milky Way, the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), could be hiding a monstrous secret.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 7 Mar. 2025
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Elizabeth Gamillo, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 June 2025
One confounding factor comes from two other LG galaxies: M33, a satellite galaxy, and the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC).
—Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 3 June 2025
According to this research, our galaxy is almost certain to merge with the Large Magellanic Cloud over the next 2 billion years.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 2 June 2025
Its location, though, is suspicious: it’s located just three degrees from the edge of the Large Magellanic Cloud (or LMC), a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 17 Apr. 2025
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
The Milky Way has numerous dwarf galaxy satellites of its own, for instance, the most famous of which are known as the Large Magellanic Cloud and the Small Magellanic Cloud.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 24 Mar. 2025
The other half seemed to be linked to a supermassive black hole at the center of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a neighboring dwarf galaxy thought to be orbiting the Milky Way.
—Margherita Bassi, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Mar. 2025
The galaxy next door to the Milky Way, the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), could be hiding a monstrous secret.
—Robert Lea, Space.com, 7 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Large Magellanic Cloud.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Large%20Magellanic%20Cloud. Accessed 14 Jun. 2025.
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