Figure 12-1 RIVUXG Mass Loss from a Supergiant Star At the heart of this nebulosity, called SMC N76, lies a supergiant star with a mass of at least 18 M_⊙. This star is losing mass at a rapid rate in a strong stellar wind. As this wind collides with the surrounding interstellar gas and dust, it creates the “bubble” shown here. SMC N76, which has an angular diameter of 130 arcsec, lies within the Small Magellanic Cloud, a small galaxy that orbits our Milky Way. It is about 60,600 pc (198,000 ly) distant.