Figure 18-17: R I V U X G
Star Formation and Jets While the protostars aren’t visible, some of their jets can be seen emanating from the thick gas and dust from which the stars are forming. As new stars form, their strong winds and intense ultraviolet radiation blow away lower-density material, leaving behind distinct regions with greater density. The denser material makes an ideal star-forming region to produce stars; the first few bright stars are already visible. This is only part of the 30 ly–wide Carina Nebula, which is about 7500 ly away.
Star Formation and Jets While the protostars aren’t visible, some of their jets can be seen emanating from the thick gas and dust from which the stars are forming. As new stars form, their strong winds and intense ultraviolet radiation blow away lower-density material, leaving behind distinct regions with greater density. The denser material makes an ideal star-forming region to produce stars; the first few bright stars are already visible. This is only part of the 30 ly–wide Carina Nebula, which is about 7500 ly away.
(NASA, ESA, and M. Livio and the Hubble 20th Anniversary Team [STScI])