Haunting Portrait: Webb Reveals the Dust and Structure of the Pillars of Creation

Why does mid-infrared light conjure up such a dark and creepy mood in Webb’s mid-infrared instrument (MIRI) image? Interstellar dust covers the scene. And while mid-infrared light specializes in detail where dust is found, stars aren’t bright enough at those wavelengths to show up. Instead, these ominous pillars of lead-hued gas and dust gleam around their edges, hinting at the activity within.

Thousands and thousands of stars have formed in this region. This is made clear when examining Webb’s recent near-infrared camera (NIRCam) image of this object. According to MIRI, the majority of stars are missing. Why? Many newly formed stars are no longer surrounded by enough dust to be detected in the mid-infrared.

Thus, MIRI can only see young stars that have not yet removed their dusty “cloaks”. These are the crimson orbs towards the fringes of the pillars. By contrast, the blue stars that dot the scene are aging, meaning they’ve lost most of their layers of gas and dust.

Mid-infrared light excels at revealing gases and dust in fine detail. This is also unmistakable throughout the background. The densest areas of dust are the darkest shades of gray. The upward red region, 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’s disk is too bloated with gas and dust to allow their distant light to penetrate.

What is the extent of this landscape? Trace the tallest pillar, landing on the bright red star that protrudes from its lower edge like a broomstick. This star and its dusty shroud are larger than the size of our entire solar system.

This scene was first photographed by NASA/ESA’s Hubble Space Telescope in 1995 and again in 2014, but many other world-class observatories have also looked closely at this region, such as the Herschel Telescope at the ESA. Each advanced instrument offers researchers tantalizing new details about this region that is practically teeming with stars.

With each observation, astronomers gain new information and, through their continued research, deepen their understanding of this star-forming region. Each new wavelength of light imaged and each new instrument provides ever more precise information about gas, dust and stars, which informs researchers’ models of star formation.

Thanks to the new MIRI image, astronomers now have data in mid-infrared light at higher resolution than ever before, and will analyze its much more precise dust measurements to create a more complete three-dimensional landscape of this distant region.

The Pillars of Creation are found in the vast Eagle Nebula, located 6500 light years away.