APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
M16: Stars from Eagle's EGGs
Explanation: Newborn stars are forming in the Eagle Nebula. This image , taken with the Hubble Space Telescope in 1995, shows evaporating gaseous globules (EGGs) emerging from pillars of molecular hydrogen gas and dust . The giant pillars are light years in length and are so dense that interior gas contracts gravitationally to form stars. At each pillars' end , the intense radiation of bright young stars causes low density material to boil away, leaving stellar nurseries of dense EGGs exposed. The Eagle Nebula , associated with the open star cluster M16 , lies about 7000 light years away.
| Date | October 26, 2003 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Credit: J. Hester, P. Scowen ( ASU ), HST , NASA |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |



