2024 Pillars of Creation and Cosmic Priority Mail Postage Stamps

Explore the Cosmos with the New Priority Mail Pillars of Creation Stamp

This striking Priority Mail stamp showcases a digitally enhanced view of the Pillars of Creation, revealing the invisible mid-infrared light emitted by this iconic celestial formation. By assigning color to various wavelengths, the image unveils a breathtaking landscape hidden from the human eye.

Brilliant red areas at the tips of the towering pillars reveal newborn stars ejecting raw materials as they form, while smaller glowing red orbs scattered throughout highlight newly born stars in the region.

Spanning approximately four to five light-years, the Pillars of Creation are just a small part of the vast Eagle Nebula, which stretches some 70 by 55 light-years across. First discovered by Swiss astronomer Jean-Philippe Loys de Cheseaux in 1745, the nebula continues to be a rich source of astronomical discovery. (For context, a light-year — the distance light travels in one year — is about six trillion miles.)

Originally made famous by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope in 1995, the Pillars of Creation have recently been re-imaged by the James Webb Space Telescope, providing unprecedented detail. According to NASA, this new view will allow researchers to refine their models of star formation by precisely counting newly formed stars and assessing the quantities of gas and dust in the region.

Some of the pillars display wavy, lava-like lines near their edges — dramatic evidence of energetic ejections from young stars still forming within clouds of gas and dust.