The ISAAC infrared images of Messier 16

This shows a zoom into the centre of ESO Press Photo eso0142a, with the infrared view of the columns and their immediate surroundings in more detail. The pillars or columns are numbered 1 to 3 from left to right (east to west). The pillars themselves are less prominent than on the Hubble visible-light image of this region - this because near-infrared light penetrates the thinner parts of the gas and dust clouds and only the heads remain opaque. A number of red objects can be seen associated with the pillars : some of these are just background sources seen through the dust, but some are probably real young stars embedded in the pillars. The purple arc near the bottom of the picture is Herbig-Haro object 216, a fast-moving clump of heated gas emanating from a young star (see also ESO Press Photo eso0142e).

Technical information: This image shows an enlarged section of the full mosaic covering 6.2 x 7.5 light-years (1.9 x 2.3 pc) centred on the pillars. North is up and East left.

Crédit:

ESO/M.McCaughrean & M.Andersen (AIP)

À propos de l'image

Identification:eso0142b
Type:Observation
Date de publication:20 décembre 2001
Communiqués de presse en rapport:eso0142
Taille:1328 x 1606 px

À propos de l'objet

Nom:Eagle Nebula, Messier 16
Type:Milky Way : Nebula : Type : Star Formation
Milky Way : Star : Grouping : Cluster
Distance:7000 années lumière
Constellation:Serpens Cauda
Catégorie:Nebulae
Star Clusters

Image Formats

Grand JPEG
1,1 Mio
JPEG taille écran
605,6 Kio

Fonds d'écran

1024x768
502,0 Kio
1280x1024
732,9 Kio
1600x1200
845,5 Kio
1920x1200
894,2 Kio
2048x1536
1,1 Mio

Coordinates

Position (RA):18 18 48.01
Position (Dec):-13° 49' 12.33"
Field of view:3.28 x 3.97 arcminutes
Orientation:North is 0.1° right of vertical

Couleurs & filtres

DomaineLongueur d'ondeTélescope
Infrarouge
J
1.2 μmVery Large Telescope
ISAAC
Infrarouge
H
1.65 μmVery Large Telescope
ISAAC
Infrarouge
K
2.16 μmVery Large Telescope
ISAAC