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Cat’s Paw Nebula (NIRCam Image)

A section of the Cat’s Paw Nebula, a local star-forming region composed of gas, dust, and young stars. Four roughly circular areas are toward the center of the frame: a small oval toward the top left, a large circle in the top center, and two ovals at bottom left and right. Each circular area has a luminous blue glow, with the top center and bottom left areas the brightest. Brown-orange filaments of dust, which vary in density, surround these four bluish patches and stretch toward the frame’s edges. Small zones, such as to the left and right of the top-center blue circular area, appear darker and seemingly vacant of stars. Toward the center are small, fiery red clumps scattered among the brown dust. Many small, yellow-white stars are spread across the scene, some with eight-pointed diffraction spikes that are characteristic of Webb. A few larger blue-white stars with diffraction spikes are scattered throughout, mostly toward the top left and bottom right. In the top right corner is a bright red-orange oval.

To celebrate NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s third year of highly productive science, astronomers used the telescope to scratch beyond the surface of the Cat’s Paw Nebula (NGC 6334), a massive, local star-forming region. This area is of great interest to scientists, having been subject to previous study by NASA’s Hubble and retired Spitzer space telescopes, as they seek to understand the multiple steps required for a turbulent molecular cloud to transition to stars.

With its near-infrared capabilities and sharp resolution, the telescope “clawed” back a portion of a singular “toe bean,” revealing a subset of mini toe bean-reminiscent structures composed of gas, dust, and young stars.

Webb’s view reveals a chaotic scene still in development: Massive young stars are carving away at nearby gas and dust, while their bright starlight is producing a bright nebulous glow represented in blue. This is only a chapter in the region’s larger story. The disruptive young stars, with their relatively short lifespans and luminosity, will eventually quench the local star formation process.

The Cat’s Paw Nebula is located approximately 4,000 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius.

To dive deeper into Webb’s image of the Cat’s Paw, embark on a narrated tour, get closer to the image, or read the press release. Additionally, learn more about Webb’s three years of science observations.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    17:20:41.87
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    -35:49:36.15
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Scorpius
  • Distance
    DistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.
    5,500 light-years
  • Dimensions
    DimensionsThe physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky.
    Image is 5.8 arcmin across (about 9.3 light-years)

About the Data

  • Data Description
    Data DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
    Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.

    This image was created with Webb data from proposal: 6778 (M. Garcia Marin). Image processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI) .

  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    NIRCam
  • Exposure Dates
    Exposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.
    6 September 2024
  • Filters
    FiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.
    F090W, F187N, F200W, F277W, F335M, F470N
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    Cat's Paw Nebula, NGC 6334
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Massive star forming region
  • Release Date
    July 10, 2025
  • Science Release
    NASA’s Webb Scratches Beyond Surface of Cat’s Paw for 3rd Anniversary
    Read the release
  • Credit
    Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

Downloads

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    tif (177.82 MB)
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    jpg (30.63 MB)
  • 1822 × 2000
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A section of the Cat’s Paw Nebula, a local star-forming region composed of gas, dust, and young stars. Four roughly circular areas are toward the center of the frame: a small oval toward the top left, a large circle in the top center, and two ovals at bottom left and right. Each circular area has a luminous blue glow, with the top center and bottom left areas the brightest. Brown-orange filaments of dust, which vary in density, surround these four bluish patches and stretch toward the frame’s edges. Small zones, such as to the left and right of the top-center blue circular area, appear darker and seemingly vacant of stars. Toward the center are small, fiery red clumps scattered among the brown dust. Many small, yellow-white stars are spread across the scene, some with eight-pointed diffraction spikes that are characteristic of Webb. A few larger blue-white stars with diffraction spikes are scattered throughout, mostly toward the top left and bottom right. In the top right corner is a bright red-orange oval.
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

These images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by the James Webb Space Telescope using the NIRCam instrument. Several filters were used to sample specific wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are:   Blue: F090W, Cyan: F187N, Green: F200W, Yellow: F277W, Orange: F335M, Red: F444W

Compass and Scale
Compass and ScaleAn astronomical image with a scale that shows how large an object is on the sky, a compass that shows how the object is oriented on the sky, and the filters with which the image was made.

Related Images & Videos

Image titled “James Webb Space Telescope; Cat’s Paw Nebula; NGC 6334,” with compass arrows, scale bar, and color key. This portion of the star-forming region contains four roughly circular areas composed of gas, dust, and young stars. Each circular area has a luminous blue glow. Many small, yellow-white stars are spread across the scene, and a few larger blue-white stars are scattered throughout. At the bottom left is a scale bar labeled 1.6 light-years. The length of the scale bar is about one sixth of the total image. At the bottom right are compass arrows indicating the orientation of the image on the sky. The east arrow points toward 12 o’clock. The north arrow points in the 3 o’clock direction. Below the image is a color key showing which NIRCam filters were used to create the image and which visible-light color is assigned to each filter. From left to right: F090W is blue, F187N is cyan, F200W is green, F277W is yellow, F335M is orange, and F470N is red.

Cat's Paw (NIRCam) Compass Image

This image of the Cat’s Paw Nebula, captured by the James Webb Space Telescope’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera), shows compass arrows, scale bar, and color key for reference.

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope's near-infrared image of a portion of the Cat's Paw Nebula. White text at center reads "Cosmic Caverns in the Cat's Paw Nebula."

Cosmic Caverns in the Cat's Paw Nebula

This visualization explores a subset of toe bean-reminiscent structures within a section of the Cat’s Paw Nebula, a massive, local star-forming region located approximately 4,000 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius. This image by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope in...

Telescope image including distant stars and the dark, arm of a galaxy are overlaid with a semi-transparent graphic representing the constellation Scorpio, as a scorpion. Thin blue lines connect the actual stars of the constellations.

Zoom into the Cat's Paw Nebula

This zoom-in video shows the location of the Cat’s Paw Nebula on the sky. It begins with a ground-based photo by the late astrophotographer Akira Fujii, then shows views from the Digitized Sky Survey. The video then hones in on a select portion of the sky to reveal a European...

White text in the center reads "Cosmic Caverns in the Cat's Paw Nebula." A tall, narrow portion of the Cat's Paw Nebula is in the background.

Cosmic Caverns in the Cat's Paw Nebula (Video Short)

This visualization explores a subset of toe bean-reminiscent structures within a section of the Cat’s Paw Nebula, a massive, local star-forming region located approximately 4,000 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius. This image by the James Webb Space Telescope in...

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Details

Last Updated
Sep 04, 2025
Contact
Media

Laura Betz
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
laura.e.betz@nasa.gov

Image Credit

NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI

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