Blue Stars and Red Pillars
Explanation:
Bright blue stars are still forming in the red pillars of the Eagle Nebula.
Made famous by a
picture from the
Hubble Space Telescope in 1995,
the
Eagle
Nebula shows the dramatic process of star formation.
To the upper right of the nebula in the
above
picture lies the heart of the
open cluster
M16. This picture closely depicts the true colors of the stars and nebula.
The bright blue stars of
M16
are continually forming from the
Eagle Nebula gas, most recently
in the famous gas and dust pillars seen below the photo's center.
Of all the young stars in
M16,
the most massive shine the brightest and the bluest.
A typical age for a star in this cluster is about 5 million years,
making them only 1/1000 the age of our
Sun.
Light takes about 7000 years to reach us from M16.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
