James Webb Telescope showed how stars are formed in a nebula 4000 light-years away from Earth
Kyiv • UNN
The James Webb Telescope has captured the process of star formation in the Cat's Paw Nebula (NGC 6334), 4000 light-years away from Earth. Infrared images revealed young star clusters and gas-dust structures, providing a deeper understanding of star birth.
The James Webb Space Telescope has made a new impressive discovery – it has captured the process of star formation in the Cat's Paw Nebula (NGC 6334), located in the constellation Scorpius. Images obtained with an infrared camera allowed scientists to see young star clusters and gas-dust structures that were previously hidden from the human eye. According to NASA, the discovery provides a deeper understanding of the turbulent process of star birth in distant corners of the Universe, writes UNN with reference to ABC News.
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The James Webb Space Telescope, the most powerful in the history of astronomy, has once again amazed the scientific community. This time, it captured the process of star birth in the Cat's Paw Nebula, located in the constellation Scorpius – approximately 4,000 light-years from Earth. This massive emission nebula, also known as NGC 6334, is an active star-forming region. It got its name from its characteristic round shapes, resembling cat paw prints.
Inside one of these "prints," according to NASA, miniature structures consisting of gas, dust, and young stars have been discovered. These are precisely what the Webb telescope's NIRCam infrared camera managed to capture.
Three years into its mission, Webb continues to deliver on its promise – revealing previously hidden aspects of the universe, from the process of star formation to some of the oldest galaxies.
The nebula allows us to observe the turbulent processes that occur during the transformation of molecular clouds into massive stars – one of the least studied stages of the Universe's evolution. When young massive stars break through the surrounding gas and dust, they form a characteristic glow – it is visible in blue in the images.
NASA emphasizes that these "revolutionary" young stars, although short-lived, play a key role in the development of their galaxy.
The photo clearly shows orange-brown layers of dust, as well as dark spots – these are dense filaments of matter in the foreground, behind which new stars continue to form. Small red clumps closer to the center of the image indicate areas of active star formation. Some blue-white stars, such as the one in the lower left corner, appear particularly clear – this is the result of their intense radiation clearing the space around them of dust.
A particularly interesting fragment is the bright red-orange oval in the upper right corner, which, according to NASA, is a dense area where star formation is just beginning. This is evidenced by the absence of a large number of stars in the background.