The Pillars of Creation sit in the Eagle Nebula some 7,000 light-years away, will disappear in about 3 million years

May 4, 2015 07:45 GMT  ·  By

In a recent paper in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, astronomers detail how, with the help of the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope, they managed to image the iconic Pillars of Creation in the 3D. 

This 3D view of the Pillars of Creation, delivered by an international team of scientists and illustrated in the videos and photos below, is all the more impressive, seeing how it is the first of its kind.

The Pillars are basically columns of gas and dust

As explained by astronomers, the Pillars of Creation are basically ginormous columns of gas and dust. They sit in the Eagle Nebula about 7,000 light-years away, in the constellation of Serpens.

Over the ages, the Pillars were sculpted by intense radiation and stellar winds. They are still losing gas and dust at a rapid pace, and scientists expect that they will very soon disappear.

Interestingly, these cosmic columns are shrinking not just because of the radiation and the winds eating away at them but also because they are using part of their gas and dust to form new stars.

“For more stars to form in environments like the Pillars of Creation, it is a race against time as intense radiation from the powerful stars that are already shining continues to grind away at the pillars,” researchers say.

The columns are currently losing the mass equivalent of 70 Suns every million years or so. Since they themselves hold the mass of about 200 Suns, this means they will vanish in about 3 million years.

A better understanding of the Pillars' anatomy

The Pillars of Creation were first imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope back in 1995. Nearly a decade later, the telescope produced yet another picture of the gas and dust columns. Both these images are included in the gallery below.

Still, astronomers say that it wasn't until the Very Large Telescope made it possible to put together a 3D view of them that they got a better idea of the Pillars' anatomy and behavior.

Writing in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, scientists explain that the Pillars reach a height of about 4 to 5 light-years. The column on the left is about twice as long as the one on the right.

The tip of this longest pillar receives a great deal of radiation. Because it is oriented in our direction, it appears brighter than the ends of the other columns near it. Thus, the tips of all the other pillars all face away from us.

By the looks of it, both the left pillar and the middle one are now each forming a star deep inside them. When exactly these stars will come into view remains a mystery.

Seeing how they will be obliterated just 3 million years from now, astronomers joke that the cosmic columns should probably be renamed the Pillars of Destruction.

Astronomers reveal 3D view of the Pillars of Creation (5 Images)

2014 Hubble Space Telescope image of the Pillars of Creation
1995 Hubble Space Telescope image of the Pillars of CreationVery Large Telescope view of the Pillars of Creation
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