NASA has released a 3D photo of the Pillars of Creation using valuable data from Hubble and James Webb.
Made famous in 1995 by the Hubble Space Telescope, the Pillars of Creation at the heart of the Eagle Nebula have captured the imagination of the world with their beauty. Now, NASA has released a new 3D visualization of these impressive celestial structures using data from the Hubble and James Webb space telescopes. It is the most complete and detailed work ever done on these star-generating nebulae.
“Flying past and between the pillars, viewers experience their three-dimensional structure and see how different they appear in Hubble’s visible-light view compared to Webb’s infrared-light view,” explained project author Frank Summers of Space Telescope Science Institute of Baltimore. “The contrast helps them understand why we have more than one space telescope to observe different aspects of the same object.” he concluded.
The Pillars of Creation
The four Pillars of Creation, made mostly of cold molecular hydrogen and dust, are being eroded by rushing winds and ultraviolet light from nearby young, hot stars. Finger-like structures larger than the solar system protrude from the tops of the pillars. Embryonic stars may be embedded within these fingers. The tallest pillar spans three light years, three-quarters of the distance between our Sun and the nearest star.
The new 3D view
The new 3D visualization helps viewers experience how two of the world’s most powerful space telescopes work together to provide a more complex portrait of these cosmic structures. Hubble sees objects shining in visible light, at thousands of degrees. Webb’s infrared vision, sensitive to the coldest objects, pierces through the dust to see stars embedded in the pillars.
“When we combine observations from NASA space telescopes at different wavelengths of light, we broaden our understanding of the universe,” said Mark Clampin, director of the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “The Pillars of Creation region continues to offer us new insights that refine our understanding of how stars form. Now, with this new visualization, everyone can experience this rich and captivating landscape in a new way.”
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