A New Look at the Pillars of Creation

    On December 25, 2021, the James Webb Space Telescope (the Hubble's successor) was launched. On July 12, 2022, we received the first photo from the telescope. Last week, on October 19, the JWST took a photo of the famous astronomical structure known as the "Pillars of Creation", located in the Eagle Nebula. I know what you all must be thinking, "what's so special about this specific photo?". Well for one, it's cool to look at (I mean what space photo isn't cool to look at), but this new photo contains the deepest, most detailed photo of the pillars that we have ever seen. Thanks to the JWST's advanced infrared technology, astronomers are able to see through the dust clouds and observe dozens of protostars! These are some of the youngest stars observed to date, with an approximate age of only a couple hundred thousand years (compared to our sun's age of 4.6 billion years). 

    The left photo is from the Hubble Telescope, and while it is an impressive photo with incredible detail, it is nearly impossible to see through the dust clouds because visible light is almost completely scattered by the dust particles. In order to be able to see through the dense dust clouds, we need to be able to observe light with longer wavelengths. This is where the James Webb Space Telescope comes in. The photo on the right is from the JWST, and because it sees in primarily infrared light, it can see through these dense clouds and reveal the dozens of red protostars I mentioned earlier. Astronomers are so infatuated with this region because it is one of the closest areas of star formation to Earth and will continue to provide us with a deeper understanding of star formation as well as how our own Sun formed.

References:

https://www.space.com/james-webb-space-telescope-pillars-creation-excites-astronomer

https://www.axios.com/2022/10/19/jwst-pillars-of-creation-photo

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2022/nasa-s-webb-takes-star-filled-portrait-of-pillars-of-creation

https://mashable.com/article/webb-telescope-pillars-of-creation