L'immagine immortalata dal telescopio spaziale James Webb è tra le più spettacolari. Una "clessidra cosmica" è stata infatti catturata dal potente occhio tecnologico della NASA e dell'Agenzia spaziale europea (ESA).
Si tratta di una stella nascente, nascosta proprio al centro del collo della clessidra, la cui luce illumina alle due estremità i gas e le polveri circostanti. La foto, oltre a darci ancora prova degli eccezionali strumenti di Webb, apre anche una preziosa finestra su come potevano apparire il Sole ed il nostro Sistema Solare nella loro infanzia: è ben visibile, infatti, anche un sottile disco scuro di materia intorno all'astro, probabilmente molto simile a quello che diede origine, 4,5 miliardi di anni fa, alla Terra e agli altri pianeti suoi compagni.
Le nubi ardenti colorate di blu e arancione sono visibili soltanto nell'infrarosso, cosa che le rende il soggetto ideale per la fotocamera a infrarossi del telescopio.
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