The Pillars of Creation as seen by Hubble in 2026 and in 1995

Updated for 2026 — This article has been reviewed and updated with the latest recommendations.

The Pillars of Creation are one of the most iconic images in astronomy. These towering columns of interstellar gas and dust sit within the Eagle Nebula, about 6,500 light-years from Earth. They were first photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope in 1995, and the images have since become some of the most recognized scientific photographs ever taken.

The Original 1995 Image

On April 1, 1995, Hubble captured the Pillars of Creation using its Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2).

The resulting image revealed three enormous columns of cold gas bathed in ultraviolet light from nearby young, hot stars. The tallest pillar stretches about 4 light-years from base to tip. For context, that is roughly the distance from our Sun to the nearest star, Alpha Centauri. The image was composed from 32 separate exposures taken through four different color filters.

Why They Are Called the Pillars of Creation

The name comes from the fact that new stars are forming within these dense columns.

As ultraviolet radiation from nearby massive stars erodes the outer layers of gas, it exposes and compresses denser pockets inside. These compressed regions can collapse under their own gravity and ignite nuclear fusion, giving birth to new stars. Ironically, the same radiation that triggers star formation will eventually destroy the pillars entirely.

The 2026 Revisit

In January 2015, NASA released new images of the Pillars taken by Hubble's upgraded Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3), installed during the 2009 servicing mission.

The new camera captured sharper details and a wider field of view than the original WFPC2. The visible-light image showed the pillars in stunning detail, while a near-infrared version revealed the newborn stars hidden inside the opaque dust columns. Comparing the 1995 and 2014 images showed subtle changes in the structure over the 19-year gap.

James Webb Space Telescope Views

In October 2022, the James Webb Space Telescope turned its infrared instruments on the Pillars of Creation.

The results were extraordinary. Webb's Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) pierced through the dust to reveal thousands of newly forming stars that Hubble could never see. Many appeared as bright red orbs at the edges of the pillars. Webb's Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) produced a haunting image where the dust itself glowed, revealing the layered structure of the columns in unprecedented detail. These observations have given astronomers a far more complete picture of star formation processes.

The Science Behind the Structure

The pillars are part of a larger star-forming region called the Eagle Nebula (Messier 16). The entire nebula spans about 70 by 55 light-years. The pillars themselves are made primarily of molecular hydrogen and dust, with densities thousands of times greater than the surrounding space. Young, massive stars in the nearby NGC 6611 cluster produce intense ultraviolet radiation that photoevaporates the surface of the pillars, sculpting them into their distinctive shapes.

Are the Pillars Already Destroyed?

A Spitzer Space Telescope observation in 2007 detected a cloud of hot dust near the pillars that some astronomers interpreted as evidence of a supernova shockwave.

If correct, the pillars may have already been destroyed about 6,000 years ago, and we simply have not seen the light from that event reach us yet. However, this interpretation remains debated, and more recent observations have not confirmed it conclusively.

What Modern Observations Tell Us

The combination of Hubble and Webb observations spanning three decades has transformed our understanding of how stars form in nebulae.

The pillars are not static structures but dynamic environments where creation and destruction happen simultaneously. Magnetic fields thread through the columns, ultraviolet radiation carves new shapes daily, and gravitational collapse births new stars deep within the densest regions.

How to See Them Yourself

The Eagle Nebula is visible with a modest telescope from dark sky locations.

Look in the constellation Serpens during summer months in the Northern Hemisphere. An 8-inch telescope with a nebula filter will show the nebula as a faint glow, though resolving the pillars themselves requires larger apertures and dark skies. Astrophotographers with tracked camera setups can capture remarkable detail even with consumer-grade equipment. All of NASA's Hubble and Webb images of the pillars are freely available at stsci.edu.

A Legacy of Discovery

Thirty years after the original photograph, the Pillars of Creation continue to inspire scientists and the public alike.

They represent one of the most photogenic examples of stellar nurseries in our galaxy and have become a symbol of what space telescopes can reveal about the universe. With Webb now providing infrared views and Hubble still operational, we can expect continued discoveries from this remarkable region for years to come.