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Pillars of Gas and Dust These huge coral-like features, made up of cool clouds of dusty gas, are the hallmark of star formation. The dark towers rise against the brighter region of the background Lagoon Nebula. Hidden within these pillars are dense globules that will eventually collapse under their own weight to yield another generation of stars. A number of dazzling stars peek out from the cosmic protuberances. The age of many of these pillars is estimated at around 100 000 years — a mere blink of the universal eye — indicating that the stars must be very young and extremely hot, burning wildly through their ample hydrogen supplies at the beginning of their evolutionary voyage. The intense ultraviolet light from these massive stars sculpts, illuminates and destroys parts of the tubular columns of gas and dust. Within a few million years, these stars will perish in grandiose explosions known as supernovae.
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