 This pillar of gas and dust is called the cone nebula. We're looking at the upper 2.5 light years of the pillar. The entire nebula is 7 light years long. Radiation from hot young stars located above the top of the image have slowly eroded the nebula over millions of years. But the cone nebula is just a small part of an even larger nebula covering about 30 light years. It includes the fox fur nebula, whose convoluted pelt lies on the lower right, and the bright variable star S-mon, visible just above the fox fur. Given the distribution, the stars of NGC 2264 are also known as the Christmas tree star cluster.