Stellar Incubators in the Trifid Nebula

NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope has uncovered a hatchery for massive stars.

A new striking image from the infrared telescope shows a vibrant cloud called the Trifid Nebula dotted with glowing stellar “incubators.” Tucked deep inside these incubators are rapidly growing embryonic stars, whose warmth Spitzer was able to see for the first time with its powerful heat-seeking eyes.

The new view offers a rare glimpse at the earliest stages of massive star formation ? a time when developing stars are about to burst into existence.

“Massive stars develop in very dark regions so quickly that is hard to catch them forming,” said Dr. Jeonghee Rho of the Spitzer Science Center, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif., principal investigator of the recent observations. “With Spitzer, it’s like having an ultrasound for stars. We can see into dust cocoons and visualize how many embryos are in each of them.”



“Spitzer can see the material from the dark cores falling onto the surfaces of the embryonic stars, because the material gets hotter as gravity draws it in,” said Dr. William T. Reach of the Spitzer Science Center, co-author of this new research. “By measuring the infrared brightness, we can not only see the individual embryos but determine their growth rate.”


Because the Trifid Nebula is home to just one massive star, it provides astronomers a rare chance to study an isolated family unit. All of the newfound stellar embryos are descended from the nebula’s main star. Said Rho, “Looking at the image, you know exactly where the embryos came from. We use their colors to determine how old they are. It’s like studying the family tree for a generation of stars.”


“In the cores with multiple embryos, we are seeing that the most massive and brightest of the bunch is near the center. This implies that the developing stars are competing for materials, and that the embryo with the most material will grow to be the largest star,” said Dr. Bertrand Lefloch of Observatoire de Grenoble, France, co-author of the new research.




The new Spitzer image is a combination of data from the telescope’s infrared array camera and multiband imaging photometer. The infrared array camera was built by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.; its development was led by Fazio. The multiband imaging photometer was built by Ball Aerospace Corporation, Boulder, Colo., the University of Arizona, Tucson, and Boeing North American, Canoga Park, Calif. The instrument’s development was led by Dr.George Rieke, University of Arizona.

Additional information about the Spitzer Space Telescope is available at

Original Source: NASA/JPL News Release