Nuggets of cold molecular hydrogen

The landscape of the Carina nebula is sculpted by intense radiation pressure from giant stars, their accompanying star clusters and stellar containing charged particles.

The glowing edges of some of these objects indicate that they are being ‘photoionized’ by the hottest stars in the cluster. Photoionisation is a process in which electromagnetic radiation (photons) rips away electrons from neutral atoms and molecules. It has been hypothesized that stars may form inside such dusty cocoons.