NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s mid-infrared view of the Pillars of Creation strikes a chilling tone. Thousands of stars that exist in this region disappear and seemingly endless layers of gas and dust become the centerpiece. Credits: Science: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Alyssa Pagan (STScI)
Webb highlights the velvet-like coating of dust throughout this star-forming region, including the shells around actively forming stars
As seen here, the pillars of creation appear otherworldly in mid-infrared light. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has captured an incredible scene that is large and towering, and appears to be lit by flickering lanterns. A “ghost” prowls the cliff in the lower left, a gargoyle form grunts toward the center of the frame, and a dark horse’s head pokes out from the edge of the second pillar. The creepiest of all? Newly formed stars take on the appearance of protruding bloodshot eyes. And in the background, the dust dances like old, heavy curtains closing. Here, there is no crow to whisper, “Never again,” to recall Edgar Allan Poe’s classic poem.
In contrast, the dust in Webb’s image is like dawn. It is an essential ingredient for star formation. Although covered, these pillars are bustling with activity. Newly forming stars are hidden within these dark gray chambers, and others, such as red rubies, have come into view. In time, Webb’s mid-infrared image will allow researchers to probe deeply into the gas and dust in this region and more precisely model how stars form over millions of years.
Compare NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s mid-infrared image of the Pillars of Creation with its near-infrared image in this short video tour. Thousands of stars have formed in this region, but interstellar dust obscures the scene in mid-infrared light, so most stars appear to be missing. A quick dissolve of the near-infrared image shows they’re still there, of course. Although mid-infrared light specializes in detailing where the dust is, and these pillars are filled with dust and gas, many stars in this region don’t have enough dust to show up at these wavelengths. Instead, mid-infrared light reveals which of the young stars still have their dusty “mantles”. These are the crimson orbs towards the pillar fringes. Instead, the blue stars that dot the scene are aging, meaning they’ve already shed most of their layers of gas and dust. How vast is this landscape? This bright red star and its dusty shroud are larger than the size of our entire solar system.
Unsettling Portrait: NASA’s Webb Reveals Dust, Structure at Pillars of Creation
This image does not represent the spreading soot-tinged fingers. Nor is it an ethereal landscape of time-forgotten tombs. These pillars, densely filled with gas and dust, surround stars that are slowly forming over many millennia. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captured this strange and extremely dusty view of the Pillars of Creation in mid-infrared light. It reveals a chilling new vision of a familiar landscape.
Why does mid-infrared light create such a somber, eerie mood in the Webb Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) image? Interstellar dust obscures the scene. And while mid-infrared light specializes in detailing where the dust is, stars aren’t bright enough at those wavelengths to show up. Instead, these looming, leaden pillars of gas and dust glow at their edges, only hinting at the activity inside.
Thousands and thousands of stars have formed in this region. This is explicitly clear when examining Webb’s recent Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam) image (see image below). However, according to MIRI, most of the stars appear to be gone. Because? Many newly formed stars are no longer surrounded by enough dust to be detected in mid-infrared light. Instead, MIRI observes young stars that have not yet thrown off their dusty “cloaks”. These are the crimson orbs towards the pillar fringes. Instead, the blue stars that dot the scene are aging. This means they have already shed most of their layers of gas and dust.
The pillars of creation unfold in a kaleidoscope of colors in the near-infrared light view of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. The pillars look like arches and spiers rising from a desert landscape, but they are filled with semi-transparent gas and dust and are constantly changing. This is a region where young stars are forming, or have barely burst out of their dusty cocoons as they continue to form. Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Anton M. Koekemoer (STScI), Alyssa Pagan (STScI).
Mid-infrared light is particularly suitable for observing gas and dust in intricate detail. This is also unmistakable throughout. Darker shades of gray are areas of denser dust. The red region towards the top, which forms a strange V, like an owl with outstretched wings, is where the dust is diffused and cooler. Note that no background galaxies appear: the interstellar medium in the densest part of the Milky Way disk is too swollen with gas and dust to allow its distant light to penetrate.
How vast is this landscape? Trace the top pillar, landing on the glowing red star that sticks out from its bottom edge like a broomstick. This star and its dusty shroud are larger than the size of our entire solar system.
This scene was first captured by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope in 1995 and revisited in 2014, but many other observatories, including NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, have also looked deeply into the pillars of creation. Astronomers gain new information with each observation. Through their ongoing research, they are building a deeper understanding of this star-forming region. Each wavelength of light and advanced instrument provide a much more precise count of gas, dust and stars, which inform researchers’ models of how stars form. As a result of the new MIRI image, astronomers now have higher-resolution data in mid-infrared light than ever before and will analyze their much more precise pulse measurements to create a more complete three-dimensional landscape of this distant region.
The Pillars of Creation are located within the vast Eagle Nebula, which is about 6,500 light years from Earth.
The James Webb Space Telescope is the most powerful space telescope ever built and the world’s leading space science observatory. It will solve the mysteries of our solar system, look beyond distant worlds around other stars, and investigate the mysterious origins and structures of our universe. Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).