Carina Nebula
May 30, 2005 - These false-color image taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows the South Pillar region of the star-forming region called the Carina Nebula. Like cracking open a watermelon and finding its seeds, the infrared telescope busted open this murky cloud to reveal star embryos (yellow or white) tucked inside finger-like pillars of thick dust (pink). Hot gases are green and foreground stars are blue. Not all of the newfound star embryos can be easily spotted. Though the nebula's most famous and massive star, Eta Carinae, is too bright to be observed by infrared telescopes, the downward-streaming rays hint at its presence above the picture frame. Ultraviolet radiation and stellar winds from Eta Carinae and its siblings have shredded the cloud to pieces, leaving a mess of tendrils and pillars. This shredding process triggered the birth of the new stars uncovered by Spitzer.
Size: 4800px × 3771px
Photo credit: © Stocktrek Images / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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