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Pillars of Creation (NIRCam and MIRI Composite Image) By combining images of the iconic Pillars of Creation from two cameras aboard NASA???s James Webb Space Telescope, the universe has been framed in its infrared glory. Webb???s near-infrared image was fused with its mid-infrared image, setting this star-forming region ablaze with new details. Myriad stars are spread throughout the scene. The stars primarily show up in near-infrared light, marking a contribution of Webb???s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam). Near-infrared light also reveals thousands of newly formed stars ??? look for bright orange spheres that lie just outside the dusty pillars. In mid-infrared light, the dust is on full display. The contributions from Webb???s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) are most apparent in the layers of diffuse, orange dust that drape the top of the image, relaxing into a V. The densest regions of dust are cast in deep indigo hues, obscuring our view of the activities inside the dense pillars. Dust also makes up the spire-like pillars that extend from the bottom left to the top right. This is one of the reasons why the region is overflowing with stars ??? dust is a major ingredient of star formation. When knots of gas and dust with sufficient mass form in the pillars, they begin to collapse under their own gravitational attraction, slowly heat up, and eventually form new stars. Newly formed stars are especially apparent at the edges of the top two pillars ??? they are practically bursting onto the scene. At the top edge of the second pillar, undulating detail in red hints at even more embedded stars. These are even younger, and are quite active as they form. The lava-like regions capture their periodic ejections. As stars form, they periodically send out supersonic jets that can interact within clouds of material, like these thick pillars of gas and dust. These young stars are estimated to be only a few hundred thousand years old, and will continue to form for mi

Society

Why ‘existential humility’ may be the answer to today’s culture wars

Embracing humility can help us open our minds and challenge our beliefs – but how do we do it? Cultivating the emotion awe may help, finds David Robson

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How much hair is the right amount to cut off? Depends who you ask

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Tom Gauld on the adventures of AI-Chessbot-5000

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Twisteddoodles on ways to make a research journal more appealing

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sprouted barley; Shutterstock ID 33767392; purchase_order: -; job: -; client: -; other: -

Chemistry

Homemade malt is the key to baking the perfect loaf of bread

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Brachycybe lecontii (F Andrognathidae) millipede

Is there a limit to how small an adult arthropod can be? If so, why?

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Beautiful sky and blue ocean; Shutterstock ID 122089855; purchase_order: -; job: -; client: -; other: -

Would whisking cold water up from the ocean depths help with warming?

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B095JB Swarm of gnats (Nematocera), Bavaria, Germany, Europe

Are gnats attracted to eyeballs, or do we just notice these ones most?

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champagne spoon

This week’s new questions

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What could stop wrong-organ surgical errors? Being careful, says study

Feedback eyes up a retrospective study of surgical errors in France, and is delighted to discover the authors have found an easy fix - the implementation of a 'safety culture'

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Life

Chile’s Atacama salt flats captured in spectacular drone shot

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Tom Gauld on a committee on extraterrestrial visits

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Twisteddoodles: Catering to pet palates

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Life

Debunking gardening myths: Does misting your houseplants really work?

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