The Cat’s Paw Nebula: A Stellar Nursery in Chaos
In this multiwavelength view of the Cat’s Paw Nebula (NGC 6334), about 4,000 light-years away in Scorpius, infrared light from the James Webb Space Telescope is combined with X-rays from the Chandra X-ray Observatory (shown in pinkish purple). A mottled patch of pink at the center reveals young, million-year-old stars tucked behind thick, overlapping rings of dark orange cosmic dust.
Webb’s infrared vision unveils a turbulent scene still unfolding: massive young stars are carving cavities into the surrounding gas and dust with powerful radiation and stellar winds, while their intense light bathes the region in a bright nebulous glow rendered in blue. These energetic newborns are both shaping and ultimately limiting the local star-forming process.
Image credit: X-ray: NASA/SAO/CXC; Infrared: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/J. Major