Hubble views a massive star forming

This image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope is full of color and activity. It has a relatively nearby star-forming region called IRAS 16562-3959, located within the Milky Way about 5,900 light-years from Earth in the constellation Scorpius.

Observations from Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 create this image. Its detailed color value is the result of four separate filters. These thin slivers of highly specialized material can slide in front of the device. Light sensor, allowing very specific wavelengths of light to pass through each observation. This is useful because certain wavelengths of light can tell us about the composition, temperature, and density of a region.

In the center of the image, IRAS 16562-3959 likely hosts a massive star—about 30 times the mass of our Sun—that is still in the process of forming. Shadowy clouds appear darker because there is more light-hazing dust that blocks the near-infrared. The wavelength of light Hubble observed. However, the near-infrared light mainly comes from two sides—upper left and lower right—where a powerful jet from the massive protostar has swept away the dust. Multi-wavelength images like this incredible Hubble view help us better understand the shape of the biggest, brightest star in our galaxy.