November 9th 05, 08:13 PM
MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICE
JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
PASADENA, CALIF. 91109 TELEPHONE (818) 354-5011
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov
Whitney Clavin (818) 354-4673
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
David Aguilar (617) 495-7462
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, Mass.
Image Advisory: 2005-162 November 9, 2005
Spitzer Captures Cosmic Mountains of Creation
A new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveals billowing
mountains of dust ablaze with the fires of stellar youth.
Captured by Spitzer's infrared eyes, the majestic image resembles
the iconic "Pillars of Creation" picture taken of the Eagle Nebula
in visible light by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in 1995.
Both views feature star-forming clouds of cool gas and dust
that have been sculpted into pillars by radiation and winds from hot,
massive stars.
The Spitzer image, which can be found at
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/Media, shows the eastern edge of a
region known as W5, in the Cassiopeia constellation 7,000 light-years
away. This region is dominated by a single massive star, whose
location outside the pictured area is "pointed out" by the
finger-like pillars. The pillars themselves are colossal, together
resembling a mountain range. They are more than 10 times the size of
those in the Eagle Nebula.
The largest of the pillars observed by Spitzer entombs hundreds
of never-before-seen embryonic stars, and the second largest
contains dozens.
"We believe that the star clusters lighting up the tips of the
pillars are essentially the offspring of the region's single,
massive star," said Dr. Lori Allen, lead investigator of the new
observations, from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics,
Cambridge, Mass. "It appears that radiation and winds from the
massive star triggered new stars to form."
Spitzer was able to see the stars forming inside the pillars
thanks to its infrared vision. Visible-light images of this same
region show dark towers outlined by halos of light. The stars inside
are cloaked by walls of dust. But infrared light coming from these
stars can escape through the dust, providing astronomers with a new
view.
"With Spitzer, we can not only see the stars in the pillars, but we
can estimate their age and study how they formed," said Dr. Joseph
Hora, a co-investigator, also from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center
for Astrophysics.
The W5 region and the Eagle Nebula are referred to as high-mass
star-forming regions. They start out as thick and turbulent clouds
of gas and dust that later give birth to families of stars, some of
which are more than 10 times more massive than the sun. Radiation
and winds from the massive stars subsequently blast the cloudy
material outward, so that only the densest pillar-shaped clumps of
material remain. The process is akin to the formation of desert
mesas, which are made up of dense rock that resisted water and
wind erosion.
According to theories of triggered star formation, the pillars
eventually become dense enough to spur the birth of a second
generation of stars. Those stars, in turn, might also trigger
successive generations. Astronomers do not know if the sun, which
formed about five billion years ago, was originally a member of
this type of extended stellar family.
Allen and her colleagues believe they have found evidence for
triggered star formation in the new Spitzer image. Though it is
possible the clusters of stars in the pillars are siblings of the
single massive star, the astronomers say the stars are more
likely its children.
Luis Chavarria is also a member of the investigating team at
the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. This research
was originally led by Dr. Lynne Deutsch of the Center for
Astrophysics, who passed away April 2, 2004.
For graphics and more information about Spitzer, visit
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/spitzer/
JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
PASADENA, CALIF. 91109 TELEPHONE (818) 354-5011
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov
Whitney Clavin (818) 354-4673
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
David Aguilar (617) 495-7462
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, Mass.
Image Advisory: 2005-162 November 9, 2005
Spitzer Captures Cosmic Mountains of Creation
A new image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope reveals billowing
mountains of dust ablaze with the fires of stellar youth.
Captured by Spitzer's infrared eyes, the majestic image resembles
the iconic "Pillars of Creation" picture taken of the Eagle Nebula
in visible light by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in 1995.
Both views feature star-forming clouds of cool gas and dust
that have been sculpted into pillars by radiation and winds from hot,
massive stars.
The Spitzer image, which can be found at
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/Media, shows the eastern edge of a
region known as W5, in the Cassiopeia constellation 7,000 light-years
away. This region is dominated by a single massive star, whose
location outside the pictured area is "pointed out" by the
finger-like pillars. The pillars themselves are colossal, together
resembling a mountain range. They are more than 10 times the size of
those in the Eagle Nebula.
The largest of the pillars observed by Spitzer entombs hundreds
of never-before-seen embryonic stars, and the second largest
contains dozens.
"We believe that the star clusters lighting up the tips of the
pillars are essentially the offspring of the region's single,
massive star," said Dr. Lori Allen, lead investigator of the new
observations, from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics,
Cambridge, Mass. "It appears that radiation and winds from the
massive star triggered new stars to form."
Spitzer was able to see the stars forming inside the pillars
thanks to its infrared vision. Visible-light images of this same
region show dark towers outlined by halos of light. The stars inside
are cloaked by walls of dust. But infrared light coming from these
stars can escape through the dust, providing astronomers with a new
view.
"With Spitzer, we can not only see the stars in the pillars, but we
can estimate their age and study how they formed," said Dr. Joseph
Hora, a co-investigator, also from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center
for Astrophysics.
The W5 region and the Eagle Nebula are referred to as high-mass
star-forming regions. They start out as thick and turbulent clouds
of gas and dust that later give birth to families of stars, some of
which are more than 10 times more massive than the sun. Radiation
and winds from the massive stars subsequently blast the cloudy
material outward, so that only the densest pillar-shaped clumps of
material remain. The process is akin to the formation of desert
mesas, which are made up of dense rock that resisted water and
wind erosion.
According to theories of triggered star formation, the pillars
eventually become dense enough to spur the birth of a second
generation of stars. Those stars, in turn, might also trigger
successive generations. Astronomers do not know if the sun, which
formed about five billion years ago, was originally a member of
this type of extended stellar family.
Allen and her colleagues believe they have found evidence for
triggered star formation in the new Spitzer image. Though it is
possible the clusters of stars in the pillars are siblings of the
single massive star, the astronomers say the stars are more
likely its children.
Luis Chavarria is also a member of the investigating team at
the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. This research
was originally led by Dr. Lynne Deutsch of the Center for
Astrophysics, who passed away April 2, 2004.
For graphics and more information about Spitzer, visit
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/spitzer/