Starship Asterisk*

M16: Pillars of Star Creation

Explanation: These dark pillars may look destructive, but they are creating stars. This pillar-capturing picture of the Eagle Nebula combines visible light exposures taken with the Hubble Space Telescope with infrared images taken with the James Webb Space Telescope to highlight evaporating gaseous globules (EGGs) emerging from pillars of molecular hydrogen gas and dust. The giant pillars are light years in length and are so dense that interior gas contracts gravitationally to form stars. At each pillar's end, the intense radiation of bright young stars causes low density material to boil away, leaving stellar nurseries of dense EGGs exposed. The Eagle Nebula, associated with the open star cluster M16, lies about 7000 light years away.

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Well, pillars, pillars, pillars everywhere!

On Earth, pillars and arches carry heavy weights.


But in space, pillars are what remains when harsh ultraviolet light and strong stellar winds from young massive stars blow away the cloud of gas and dust that they were born from, but denser clumps of gas and dust stay on for a longer time. The denser clumps protect their own "shadows" "downwind" from the hot stars - that way pillars are born.


Just like the pillars of NGC 3603 are being sculpted by the intense ultraviolet light and harsh winds from that mighty cluster, so the Eagle Nebula's Pillars of Creation are being sculpted by young massive cluster M16.


The most curious aspect of the Eagle Nebula is the ginormous "keyhole" "above" the cluster:



We have discussed this thing before here at Starship Asterisk, and I am no closer to understanding how it could have formed. Perhaps a light-centuries tall cosmic giant is looking for this keyhole so he can unlock the secrets of the Universe? 🗝

As for the Pillars of Creation, my favorite portrait of them is this one by James Webb:


How can you not be impressed by this JWST image? I know I am. But the APOD is fine, too!

Ann

If I understand correctly those EGGs at the tip of the tiny comlumns I've circled, they each contain a newborn star slowly drifting out of the main pillar?

Christian G. wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 12:12 pm If I understand correctly those EGGs at the tip of the tiny comlumns I've circled, they each contain a newborn star slowly drifting out of the main pillar?

Click to view full size image

Possibly, but to the best of my knowledge, there are no immediate signs of it.


It seems to me that young stars hidden by dust should show up in infrared. They may also show up in X-rays. If you go to this page, you can see the same view of the Pillars of Creation in both visible light, infrared and X-rays. Neither the visible image, the infrared nor the X-ray one show signs of star birth in the positions you circled. I don't see anything in the JWST image, either. Note that the JWST image is 4.73 MB!

My guess is that the "mini-pillars" in question are too lightweight to create new stars. Only the larger pillars contain enough mass to make new stars.

Ann

P.S. This is my 13777th post. Feels like a lucky number somehow.

Ann wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 1:40 pm

Christian G. wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 12:12 pm If I understand correctly those EGGs at the tip of the tiny comlumns I've circled, they each contain a newborn star slowly drifting out of the main pillar?

Click to view full size image

Possibly, but to the best of my knowledge, there are no immediate signs of it.

Credit: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)

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Credit, infrared: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)

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It seems to me that young stars hidden by dust should show up in infrared. They may also show up in X-rays. If you go to this page, you can see the same view of the Pillars of Creation in both visible light, infrared and X-rays. Neither the visible image, the infrared nor the X-ray one show signs of star birth in the positions you circled. I don't see anything in the JWST image, either. Note that the JWST image is 4.73 MB!

My guess is that the "mini-pillars" in question are too lightweight to create new stars. Only the larger pillars contain enough mass to make new stars.

Ann

P.S. This is my 13777th post. Feels like a lucky number somehow.

Good points!
p.s. here, a star for your lucky post 13777 https://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/simbad/sim- ... HD%2013777

Ann wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 1:40 pm It seems to me that young stars hidden by dust should show up in infrared. They may also show up in X-rays.

Well, young stars are often very hot, which means they will be dim in IR. But they may be surrounded by dust, which tends to be bright in IR (depending on the wavelength... IR is a very broad range). Certainly some young stars are hot enough to be bright in X-rays... but I'm not sure how the X-ray view is impacted by surrounding dust. It's all very complex.

Chris Peterson wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 2:18 pm

Ann wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 1:40 pm It seems to me that young stars hidden by dust should show up in infrared. They may also show up in X-rays.

Well, young stars are often very hot, which means they will be dim in IR. But they may be surrounded by dust, which tends to be bright in IR (depending on the wavelength... IR is a very broad range). Certainly some young stars are hot enough to be bright in X-rays... but I'm not sure how the X-ray view is impacted by surrounding dust. It's all very complex.

Well, the Snowflake Cluster in NGC 2264, which is mostly hidden from view in optical light, shows up well in infrared. And the cluster inside the Flame Nebula, which can't be seen in optical light, shows up well in both infrared and X-rays.


As for whether there are stars inside the EGGs circled by Christian G, I'm not arguing. Obviously there won't be a cluster of stars inside a tiny little mini-pillar, but just a single star or a binary star (or no star at all). Certainly it's hard to know if a single star or a binary star inside a dust cloud will show up in either infrared or X-rays. I'm just saying that I haven't found any pictures showing signs of hidden stars in there.

Ann

Christian G. wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 2:15 pm Good points!
p.s. here, a star for your lucky post 13777 https://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/simbad/sim- ... HD%2013777

Thank you, Christian!

Ann

Christian G. wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 12:12 pm If I understand correctly those EGGs at the tip of the tiny comlumns I've circled, they each contain a newborn star slowly drifting out of the main pillar?
M16_HubbleWebbPisano_6500 copie.jpg

I don't think that they slowly drifting out of the main pillar. I think they stay where they were in the earlier cloud,
but the less dense regions have been dissolved by the increasing radiation pressure of the nearby bright and UV-strong stars.
Original Data: NASA/ESA/CSA (JWST F090w) jac berne (flickr)


It is unclear whether there is still a star in there. But when the "horns" appear, this is an unmistakable sign.
Original Data: NASA/ESA (HST) HH1066 Closeup jac berne (flickr)

AVAO wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 7:17 pm

Christian G. wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 12:12 pm If I understand correctly those EGGs at the tip of the tiny comlumns I've circled, they each contain a newborn star slowly drifting out of the main pillar?
M16_HubbleWebbPisano_6500 copie.jpg

I don't think that they slowly drifting out of the main pillar. I think they stay where they were in the earlier cloud,
but the less dense regions have been dissolved by the increasing radiation pressure of the nearby bright and UV-strong stars.

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

Original Data: NASA/ESA/CSA (JWST F090w) jac berne (flickr)


It is unclear whether there is still a star in there. But when the "horns" appear, this is an unmistakable sign.

Click to view full size image

Original Data: NASA/ESA (HST) HH1066 Closeup jac berne (flickr)

I see, thanks for your input. (and nice pillar image!)

AVAO wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 7:17 pm

Christian G. wrote: ↑Tue Oct 22, 2024 12:12 pm If I understand correctly those EGGs at the tip of the tiny comlumns I've circled, they each contain a newborn star slowly drifting out of the main pillar?
M16_HubbleWebbPisano_6500 copie.jpg

I don't think that they slowly drifting out of the main pillar. I think they stay where they were in the earlier cloud,
but the less dense regions have been dissolved by the increasing radiation pressure of the nearby bright and UV-strong stars.

Click to view full size image 1 or image 2

Original Data: NASA/ESA/CSA (JWST F090w) jac berne (flickr)


It is unclear whether there is still a star in there. But when the "horns" appear, this is an unmistakable sign.

Click to view full size image

Original Data: NASA/ESA (HST) HH1066 Closeup jac berne (flickr)

Well, if the "horns" are jets, then they certainly show that a star is being born in there.


Jets from (the tops of) pillars are an unmistakable sign of star formation:


This formation contains two pairs of jets, one from the top pillar and one from a stubby pillar below and to the left of it. The Mystic Mountain is being sculpted by massive cluster Trumpler 14.


And there is a long narrow jet and what looks like an elongated mini-pillar (or another jet?) from a large rounded pillar in the Trifid Nebula:


Note the position of the large rounded pillar with the jet and the elongated mini-pillar. It is located below and slightly to the left of the bright stars that ionize the Trifid Nebula:

Ann

As someone on the edge of dimentia, I see a couple with their dog on the right, standing on the hind legs.

hypermetabolic wrote: ↑Thu Oct 24, 2024 12:57 am As someone on the edge of dimentia, I see a couple with their dog on the right, standing on the hind legs.

Ha ha! Did you see the pillars in NGC 3603? That sure is a man in a flat cap and his dog!

Ann