Webb Continues to Study Star-Forming Nebulae, Snaps Photos of Tarantula Nebula

Lately, the James Webb Space Telescope has kicked things into high gear, taking amazing images of galaxies and nebulae using its near-infrared and mid-infrared technology to peer into the gas and dust of these objects. This has included galaxies like the Phantom Galaxy and nebulae like the Eagle Nebula, which houses the famous Pillars of Creation. Now Webb has taken a detailed look at the Tarantula Nebula, changing what we know about how active this segment of space is.

Left: Tarantula Nebula taken by Webb’s NIRCam. Right: Another view of the Tarantula Nebula, taken by Webb’s MIRI. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERO Production Team

The image above shows a comparison between the two images of the Tarantula Nebula taken by Webb. The first was taken using Webb’s Near-Infrared camera (NIRCam). In this image, a dense cluster of young blue stars can be seen in the center of a star-forming region of gas and dust. The interstellar dust of this nebula is responsible for creating newborn stars as the dust falls in on itself due to gravity.

The Tarantula Nebula, taken by Webb’s NIRCam. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERO Production Team

Webb’s second image of the Tarantula Nebula takes full advantage of Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) to show off details of the nebula that are too dim to be seen in the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum. This view allows us to see more of…