Eagle Nebula

The Eagle Nebula, or Messier 16, is a star-forming region in Serpens whose dense columns of gas and dust include the Pillars of Creation.

Molecular cloud: A cold, dense interstellar cloud composed mainly of molecular hydrogen. The nebula’s star-forming material originates in dense molecular gas.
NGC 6611: A young open star cluster associated with the Eagle Nebula in Serpens. Its hot stars illuminate and erode the surrounding nebular material.
Ionizing radiation: Radiation energetic enough to remove electrons from atoms or molecules. Ultraviolet photons from NGC 6611 ionize and heat the nebula’s gas.
Hubble Space Telescope: A space observatory launched in 1990 that observes the universe across ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared wavelengths. The telescope’s portrait of the nebula became one of its most widely circulated images.
Star formation: The process by which dense regions of interstellar gas collapse to form stars. The Eagle Nebula is a visible site of ongoing star formation.
Messier 16: The designation in the Messier catalog for the Eagle Nebula and its associated star cluster. This catalog name is commonly used for the nebula as an observing target.
H II region: A region of ionized hydrogen around hot, young stars. Its glowing hydrogen marks gas ionized by the cluster’s ultraviolet light.
Supernova: A powerful stellar explosion marking the death of a star or the disruption of a white dwarf. A disputed interpretation of X-ray evidence proposed that a past supernova shock contributed to pillar destruction.
Stellar wind: A stream of charged particles flowing outward from a star. Winds from young massive stars help sculpt the nebula’s gas and dust.
James Webb Space Telescope: A space observatory designed primarily for infrared astronomy, launched in 2021. Its infrared views reveal stars and structures obscured in visible-light images.

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