Thousands of sparkling newborn stars ignite in Webb’s Lobster Nebula view

Pismis 24: A Stellar Nursery Within the Lobster Nebula

Pismis 24, a young star cluster embedded in the core of the Lobster Nebula about 5,500 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius, lies at the center of this image. This region is one of the closest and most active nurseries where massive stars are born. Because of its relative proximity, Pismis 24 offers astronomers a rare opportunity to study the extreme environments in which hot, giant stars form and evolve.

At the heart of this glittering cluster shines Pismis 24-1, a brilliant star system positioned near a cluster of stars above the jagged orange ridges. The tallest spire in the image points directly toward it. Once thought to be the single most massive star known, Pismis 24-1 has since been revealed to consist of at least two individual stars that cannot be separated in this image. With estimated masses of 74 and 66 times that of the Sun, these stars remain among the most luminous and powerful ever discovered.

Webb's Infrared Vision Reveals Thousands of Stars

Captured in infrared light using Webb's NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera), the image reveals thousands of stars scattered throughout the cluster. The brightest stars, easily recognized by their six-point diffraction spikes, are the largest and hottest members of Pismis 24. Surrounding them are countless smaller stars, appearing white, yellow, or red depending on their type and the amount of dust that surrounds them. Beyond the cluster, Webb also reveals tens of thousands of stars belonging to our own Milky Way galaxy.

The cluster's young stars are incredibly hot, some reaching nearly eight times the Sun's temperature. Their intense radiation and powerful stellar winds are carving a large cavity into the surrounding nebula, which stretches far beyond what NIRCam can capture. At the edges of the image, streamers of hot, ionized gas extend outward, while thin veils of dust and gas, lit by starlight, drift around the towering peaks of the region.

Towering Spires and Stellar Sculptures

From the glowing wall of gas, dramatic spires rise up like fingers reaching toward the stars that shape them. These pillars are both destroyed and reborn by the same forces -- compressed by radiation and wind to the point where new stars begin to form inside them. The tallest spire spans about 5.4 light-years from top to bottom. To visualize its scale, more than 200 solar systems stretching out to Neptune's orbit could fit across the tip alone, which measures 0.14 light-years wide.

In Webb's image, color reveals the hidden chemistry of this stellar nursery. Cyan represents hot, ionized hydrogen gas energized by the cluster's massive young stars. Orange tones mark the presence of dust particles similar to smoke on Earth. Cooler, denser molecular hydrogen appears in shades of red, with darker reds indicating thicker gas clouds. Black areas mark regions so dense they emit no visible light, while the wispy white streaks show dust and gas scattering starlight.

The Power Behind Webb

The James Webb Space Telescope is the most advanced space observatory ever built. It is helping scientists solve mysteries of our solar system, investigate distant exoplanets, and explore the origins and structure of the universe itself. Webb is a global collaboration led by NASA in partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).