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M16 NEBULA |
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This shows part of M16, the "Eagle Nebula", a nearby star-forming region in the constellation Serpens.
The "pillars" consist of particularly dense clouds of hydrogen molecules and cosmic dust.
The nebula is bathed in ultraviolet light from nearby hot, young stars, which slowly erodes the pillars.
As the pillars are eroded, they reveal smaller and denser clumps of gas, containing embryonic stars.
Click here for more information from a NASA website
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Comments/enquiries: a.wolff@ucl.ac.uk |