... M16: Stars, Pillars and the Eagle s EGGs . ... Credit: Mark McCaughrean and Morten Andersen ( AIP ), ESO Explanation: The Hubble Space Telescope's 1995 image of pillars of dust and gas, light-years long, within the Eagle Nebula ( M16 ) was sensational. The three prominent pillars in that close-up visible light picture also appear below center in this wide-field mosaic along with massive, bright, young stars of cluster NGC 6611 (upper right), whose winds and radiation are shaping the dusty pillars. ...