Exploring Bella Junior’s Supernova, also referred to as RX J0852.0-4622 or G266.2-1.2, scientists have revealed the mysteries surrounding its explosive past. This ancient nebula, once a brilliant supernova, has perplexed researchers regarding its distance and the magnitude of its explosion. Recently, however, groundbreaking discoveries linked a newly formed star, Ve 7-27, with the remnants of Bella Junior. By utilizing the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) on the ESO’s Very Large Telescope, astronomers have captured unprecedented detailed images of Ve 7-27.
VLT/MUSE image of Ve 7-27. Image credit: ESO / Suherli et al.
“This is the first evidence ever connecting a newborn star to the remnants of a supernova,” stated Dr. Samar Safi Harb, an astrophysicist from the University of Manitoba.
“This discovery resolves a decades-long debate, enabling us to calculate the distance of Bella Junior, its size, and the true power of the explosion.”
By examining the gas emissions from Ve 7-27, Dr. Safi Harb and his team confirmed that it shares the same chemical signature as materials from the Vela Junior supernova.
This correlation established a physical connection between the two celestial bodies, allowing astronomers to accurately determine Bella Junior’s distance.
Both Ve 7-27 and Vela Junior are approximately 4,500 light-years away.
“The gas present in this young star mirrors the chemical composition of stars that exploded in the past,” remarked Dr. Safi Harb.
“Isn’t it poetic? Those same elements eventually contributed to Earth and now play a role in forming new stars.”
Recent findings indicate that Bella Junior is larger, more energetic, and expanding at a rate quicker than previously thought, marking it as one of the most potent supernova remnants in our galaxy.
“Stars are constructed in layers, much like onions,” Dr. Safi Harb explained. “When they explode, these layers are propelled into space.”
“Our research indicates that these layers are now becoming visible in the jets of nearby young stars.”
“This study not only solves an enduring astronomical enigma but also sheds light on stellar evolution, the enrichment of galaxies with elements, and how extreme cosmic events continue to shape our universe.”
This research was published today in a study featured in the Astrophysics Journal Letters.
Exciting new infrared images from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope showcase the intricate structure of gas and dust expelled by a white dwarf star at the heart of the Helix Nebula.
This web image captures part of the Helix Nebula with stunning detail. Image credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI/A. Pagan, STScI.
Located approximately 655 light years away in the constellation Aquarius, the Helix Nebula is a captivating planetary nebula.
First discovered in the early 1800s, it continues to enchant stargazers and professional astronomers alike, owing to its closeness to Earth and mesmerizing visual appeal.
The image captured by Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) reveals a comet-like column with an extended tail tracing the edges of the expanding gas shell, as noted by Webb astronomers.
“Fierce winds from a dying star clash with a frigid shell of gas, sculpting the remarkable structure of the nebula,” they explained.
“The iconic Helix Nebula has been observed by various ground-based and space-based observatories for nearly two centuries since its discovery.”
“Webb’s near-infrared observations highlight these intricate knots, contrasting with conventional imaging techniques. Check out this fantastic image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.”
This image offers a panoramic view of the Helix Nebula, accentuating the narrow field of view from Webb’s NIRCam instrument. Image credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI/A. Pagan, STScI.
The new images additionally highlight the dramatic transition from the hottest to the coldest gas as the shell expands from the central white dwarf star, WD 2226-210.
The bright white dwarf lies at the heart of the nebula, just outside the Webb image’s frame, continuing to influence its surroundings.
“Intense radiation from this star illuminates the surrounding gas, creating vibrant rainbow-colored features: hot ionized gas closest to the white dwarf, cooler hydrogen molecules further away, and protective pockets in the dust cloud where more complex molecules can start to form,” the astronomers noted.
This interaction is vital, paving the way for new planetary systems to potentially form in the future.
“In the Webb images of the Helix Nebula, colors represent temperature and chemical reactions,” they explained.
“A slight blue tint reveals the hottest gas in the area, ignited by powerful ultraviolet light.”
“Further out, the gas transitions into a yellow region where hydrogen atoms merge to form molecules.”
The outer edge, adorned with a reddish hue, marks the coldest material where gas begins to thin and dust can emerge.
“These colors symbolize the star’s last breath transforming into the foundational material for new worlds, enriching our understanding of how planets originate,” the astronomers concluded.
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Astronomers utilizing the WHT Extended Area Velocity Explorer (WEAVE), a cutting-edge instrument aboard the William Herschel Telescope on La Palma Island, have uncovered an intriguing elongated structure of ionized iron within the renowned Ring Nebula.
A composite image of the Ring Nebula featuring four WEAVE/LIFU emission line images. Image credit: Wesson et al., doi: 10.1093/mnras/staf2139.
The Ring Nebula, also known as Messier 57, M57, or NGC 6720, is a classic planetary nebula located approximately 2,000 light-years away in the constellation Lyra.
This nebula was first discovered by the French astronomer Charles Messier in January 1779 while he was on a mission to find comets.
Messier’s report about the discovery of Comet Bode reached fellow astronomer Antoine d’Alquier de Perpois shortly afterward, who subsequently rediscovered the Ring Nebula during his comet observations.
The newly identified rod-shaped cloud of iron atoms resides within the inner layer of this elliptical nebula.
Measuring about 500 times the length of Pluto’s orbit around the sun, this cloud’s atomic mass of iron is comparable to that of Mars.
This iron cloud was detected using the Large Integral Field Unit (LIFU) mode of the innovative WEAVE instrument on the 4.2-meter William Herschel Telescope, part of the Isaac Newton Group.
According to Dr. Roger Wesson, an astronomer from University College London and Cardiff University: “While the Ring Nebula has been extensively studied with various telescopes, WEAVE enables us to observe it in unprecedented detail, providing much richer information than previously available.”
“By continuously collecting spectra across the nebula, we can image it at any wavelength and analyze its chemical composition at any given location.”
“As we process the data and examine the images, we discover a never-before-seen ‘rod’ of ionized iron atoms at the heart of this iconic ring.”
The exact nature of the iron “rods” within the Ring Nebula remains uncertain.
Two potential scenarios emerge: the bar may offer new insights into the nebula’s formation and ejection by its parent star, or (more intriguingly) it could represent an arc of plasma from a rocky planet evaporating during the star’s initial expansion.
Professor Janet Drew, also from University College London, noted: “We need to investigate further, particularly to determine if the newly detected iron coexists with other elements. This could guide us toward the appropriate models to explore.”
“Currently, this crucial information is lacking.”
For more in-depth details, check out the findings published today in the Royal Astronomical Society Monthly Notices.
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R. Wesson et al. 2026. WEAVE Imaging Spectroscopy of NGC 6720: Iron Rods in the Ring. MNRAS 546 (1): staf2139; doi: 10.1093/mnras/staf2139
In celebration of the 25th anniversary of the International Gemini Observatory’s completion, students in Chile chose the Gemini South Telescope to capture an image of NGC 6302, also known as the Bug Nebula or Butterfly Nebula (Caldwell 69).
This image captured by the Gemini South Telescope showcases the planetary nebula NGC 6302. Image credit: International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / J. Miller & M. Rodriguez, International Gemini Observatory & NSF’s NOIRLab / TA Rector, University of Alaska Anchorage & NSF’s NOIRLab / M. Zamani, NSF’s NOIRLab.
NGC 6302 is a planetary nebula situated 2,417 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius.
“Planetary nebulae are a type of emission nebula formed by a massive star at the end of its lifecycle, shedding material and surrounded by an expanding, glowing shell of ionized gas,” stated astronomers at the International Gemini Observatory.
“These intriguing structures usually have a circular, planet-like appearance, which is how they earned the name ‘planetary nebulae’ from early astronomers who observed them through telescopes.”
While various dates are associated with the discovery of NGC 6302, a 1907 study by American astronomer Edward E. Barnard is commonly credited, though it could have been discovered earlier in 1826 by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop.
This nebula is characterized by an extremely complex dipolar morphology, highly excited gases, elevated molecular weight, and the presence of crystalline silicate dust.
Its butterfly shape extends over two light-years, roughly half the distance from the Sun to Proxima Centauri.
“In recent images obtained from the Gemini South Telescope, the glowing ‘wings’ of the Butterfly Nebula appear to emerge from the interstellar medium,” the astronomers explained.
“This visually stunning object was chosen by Chilean students for the 8.1-meter telescope as part of the Gemini First Light Anniversary Image Contest.”
“This competition engaged students at the Gemini telescope site, honoring the legacy established by the International Gemini Observatory since its first light in November 2000.”
In 2009, astronomers utilized the Wide Field Camera 3 on the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to identify the central star of NGC 6302 as a white dwarf. This star shed its outer layers over 2,000 years ago and now possesses about two-thirds the mass of the Sun.
It ranks as one of the hottest known stars, with a surface temperature exceeding 250,000 degrees Celsius (450,000 degrees Fahrenheit), indicating it must have formed from a substantially large star.
Further investigation of NGC 6302 uncovers a dramatic formation history.
Before its transformation into a white dwarf, the star was a red giant approximately 1,000 times the diameter of the Sun.
This massive star expelled its outer gas layer, moving outward from the equator at a relatively slow rate, forming a dark donut-shaped band still observable around the star.
Other gases were expelled perpendicular to this band, restricting outflow and creating the bipolar structure visible today.
As the star evolved, it released strong stellar winds that pierced its “wings” at speeds exceeding 3 million kilometers per hour (1.8 million miles per hour).
This combination of slow and fast-moving gases further sculpted the “wings,” revealing a vast terrain of cloudy ridges and pillars.
Now, as a white dwarf, the star emits intense radiation that elevates the temperature of NGC 6302’s “wings” to over 20,000 degrees Celsius (approximately 35,000 degrees Fahrenheit), causing the gas to glow.
“Dark red areas in the image represent regions of energized hydrogen gas, while deep blue spots indicate regions of energized oxygen gas,” the researchers mentioned.
“These materials, alongside other elements like nitrogen, sulfur, and iron discovered in NGC 6302, are critical for forming the next generation of stars and planets.”
Astronomers have identified a faint planetary nebula during a spectroscopic examination of stars in NGC 1866, a vast young globular cluster within the Milky Way satellite galaxy, known as the Large Magellanic Cloud. This nebula, designated Ka LMC 1, is situated near the core of NGC 1866.
This image shows NGC 1866 overlaid with a false-color representation from the MUSE data cube, highlighting the ionized shell of planetary nebula Ka LMC 1 as a red ring. The grayscale inset details the sizes of the ionization shells of singly ionized nitrogen. [N II] and doubly ionized oxygen [O III]. A magnified Hubble image reveals a pale blue star at the center, likely the hot central star of Ka LMC 1. Image credit: AIP / MM Roth / NASA / ESA / Hubble.
NGC 1866 is located at the edge of the Large Magellanic Cloud, approximately 160,000 light-years from Earth.
This cluster, also referred to as ESO 85-52 and LW 163, was discovered by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop on August 3, 1826.
Surprisingly, NGC 1866 is a young globular cluster positioned close enough for individual star studies.
In a recent spectroscopic investigation of NGC 1866, astronomers analyzed spectra captured by the MUSE Integral Field Spectrometer on ESO’s Very Large Telescope.
They made an unexpected and intriguing discovery: the ionized shell of a planetary nebula.
A subsequent study utilized images from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to explore the nature of the object, which has been named Ka LMC 1.
“Planetary nebulae signify a late phase in a star’s evolution, during which the star consumes hydrogen for nucleosynthesis, expands as a red giant in a shell-burning phase, and eventually sheds most of its mass into a large, expanding shell. The remaining core then contracts and heats up, eventually cooling to become a white dwarf,” explained lead author Dr. Howard Bond, an astronomer at Pennsylvania State University and the Space Telescope Science Institute, along with his colleagues.
“Once the core surpasses 35,000 degrees, the shell ionizes and becomes visible through emission lines at specific wavelengths.”
The research team noted that Hubble images depict the hot central star of the Ka LMC 1 nebula.
“Ka LMC 1 is a genuine enigma. A young star cluster aged 200 million years implies that its progenitor star must be significantly massive,” noted astronomer Professor Martin Roth from the Potsdam Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics, the Institute for Physics and Astronomy at the University of Potsdam, and the German Center for Astrophysics.
“However, such a star would quickly evolve towards a cooling white dwarf stage.”
“Reconciling the age of the planetary nebula’s expanding shell with the theoretical evolutionary trajectory of its central star has been challenging.”
“This object undoubtedly demands further detailed observations to clarify its characteristics.”
“It presents a rare opportunity to observe star evolution over a timeframe that usually spans millions, if not billions, of years.”
“Yet, the evolution of massive central stars occurs in merely a few thousand years, making it possible to align with the timeline of the nebula’s expansion.”
According to a study published on November 7, 2025, in Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.
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Howard E. Bond et al. 2025. A faint planetary nebula was accidentally discovered in the massive young LMC star cluster NGC 1866. pasp 137, 114202; doi: 10.1088/1538-3873/ae1664
Utilizing the Near Infrared Camera (NIRCam) aboard the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have obtained fresh images of the Red Spider Nebula, a prominent planetary nebula located in the constellation Sagittarius.
This web image showcases the Red Spider Nebula. Image credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/Webb/JH Kastner, Rochester Institute of Technology.
The Red Spider Nebula was identified by American astronomer and physicist Edward Charles Pickering on July 15, 1882.
This astronomical object is located roughly 12,420 light-years away from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius.
Commonly referred to as NGC 6537, ESO 590-1, and IRAS 18021-1950, it has an approximate radius of 3.6 light-years.
“Planetary nebulae, like the Red Spider Nebula, form when average stars, such as our Sun, reach the conclusion of their life cycles,” Webb astronomers noted in a statement.
“As these stars expand into cool red giants, they shed their outer layers, propelling them into space and revealing their hot white cores.”
“Ultraviolet radiation from the central star ionizes the ejected material, causing it to emit light.”
“The planetary nebula stage of a star’s lifecycle is both spectacular and brief, lasting only tens of thousands of years.”
“This Webb image displays the central star of the Red Spider Nebula, which shines slightly brighter than the dusty gas web surrounding it.”
In optical images from telescopes such as Hubble, the stars appear faintly blue.
However, in the NIRCam image, it appears red. Webb’s sensitive near-infrared capabilities have unveiled the hot dust enveloping the central star.
“This hot dust likely orbits the central star in a disk-like formation,” the astronomers explained.
“Even though only one star is visible at the nebula’s center, a concealed companion star may exist there.”
“Such a stellar companion could account for the nebula’s shape, including its distinctive narrow waist and broad jets.”
“This hourglass configuration is also observed in other planetary nebulae, like the Butterfly Nebula, which Webb has also recently studied.”
“Webb’s fresh perspective on the Red Spider Nebula reveals, for the first time, the complete extent of the nebula’s extended lobes that resemble the spider’s ‘legs,'” researchers stated.
“These lobes, depicted in blue, are traced by light emitted from H.2, a molecule consisting of two hydrogen atoms bonded together.”
“These lobes, which are visible across NIRCam’s field of view, are shown to be closed, bubble-like structures, each stretching about three light-years.”
“Gas streaming from the core of the nebula has inflated these massive bubbles over countless years.”
“New observations from Webb indicate that gas is also actively being ejected from the nebula’s center.”
“A protracted purple ‘S’ shape at the nebula’s center follows light from ionized iron atoms.”
“This feature illustrates where a fast-moving jet has emerged near the nebula’s central star, colliding with previously ejected material and shaping the nebula’s undulating structure that we observe today.”
Astronomers utilizing the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope captured stunning new images of the Star Cluster Pismis 24, located in the heart of the nearby Lobster Nebula.
This web image showcases Pismith 24, with young stars clustering around the 5,500 light-year-old star in the Psycholpius constellation. Image credits: NASA/ESA/CSA/STSCI/A. PAGAN, STSCI.
Pismis 24 is located roughly 5,500 light years away from the Scorpius constellation.
This cluster, part of the Lobster Nebula, is the largest known star cluster to date.
“As a vibrant stellar nursery and one of the closest locales for the birth of a massive star, Pismith 24 provides unusual insights into the characteristics of large-scale stars,” Webb astronomers noted in a statement.
“This region serves as an excellent venue for exploring the traits of hot, young stars and their evolutionary paths.”
“It’s remarkable to be at the center of this dazzling cluster Pismith 24-1.”
“Within a mass of stars towering above the jagged orange peak, the tallest spire points directly at it.”
“Initially appearing as a massive single star, Pismis 24-1 was once considered the largest known star.”
“In reality, it comprises at least two stars, which cannot be resolved in a Webb image.”
“With respective masses of 74 and 66 solar masses, the two known stars rank among the largest and brightest ever observed.”
This latest image from Webb’s Nircam (near-infrared camera) reveals thousands of gem-like stars of varying sizes and colors.
“The largest and most astonishing, with six diffraction spikes, is the biggest star in the cluster,” an astronomer commented.
“The numerous small members of the cluster appear as white, yellow, or red, differing by star type and surrounding dust levels.”
Webb also highlights tens of thousands of stars positioned behind clusters that belong to the Milky Way galaxy.
A very hot infant star—almost eight times the temperature of the Sun—creates powerful winds and radiation, shaping a cavity in the walls of the star-forming nebulae.
The nebula far exceeds what Nilkham can observe.
Only a few of these are visible at the bottom right and top right of the image.
“Streams of hot ionized gas from the nebula ridge and a faint veil of star-lit gas and dust surround the towering peak,” the researchers explained.
“A dramatic spire protrudes from the glowing gas walls, resisting the relentless radiation and winds.”
“These spires resemble fingers pointing towards the hot young stars that carved them.”
“The intense forces that shape and compress these spires will likely lead to the formation of new stars within them.”
“The tallest spire measures approximately 5.4 light years from its tip to the bottom of the image.”
“Over 200 solar systems in Neptune’s orbit could fit within its tip, which is 0.14 light-years wide.”
“In this image, cyan represents hydrogen gas that has been heated or ionized by a large young star.”
“Dust molecules akin to Earth’s smoke are depicted in orange. Red signifies cold, dense molecular hydrogen; the darker the red, the thicker the gas. Black indicates dense gas that does not emit light.
Thanks to the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have made significant progress in understanding the connection between the raw materials of rocky planets. This cosmic material—crystalline silicate dust and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons—was analyzed in the core of the remarkable bipolar planetary nebula known as the Butterfly Nebula.
Hubble and Webb/Alma images of Butterfly Nebula. Image credits: NASA/ESA/CSA/Webb/Hubble/Alma/Matsuura et al. , doi: 10.1093/mnras/staf1194.
The Butterfly Nebula, also referred to as NGC 6302, is among the most extensively studied planetary nebulae.
This nebula is situated approximately 2,417 light years away from Earth, in the constellation Scorpio.
Its distinctive butterfly shape has expanded over two light years, roughly half the distance from the Sun to Proxima Centauri.
The object exhibits extreme bipolarity, complex morphology, and features very high excitation gases, high molecular weight, and crystalline silicates.
“The planetary nebula is one of the most stunning and elusive phenomena in the cosmic landscape,” stated Mikako, an astronomer from Cardiff University, along with Matsui Ko and her colleague.
“These nebulae form when stars with masses between 0.8 and 8 times that of the Sun shed most of their mass at the end of their lifecycle.”
“The nebula phases on planets are transient, lasting only about 20,000 years.”
“Despite their name, planetary nebulae have no connection to planets. The confusion arose centuries ago, when astronomers noted that these nebulae appeared round, resembling planets.”
“Although many planetary nebulae are not round, their titles often reflect misleading names, and the Butterfly Nebula is a prime illustration of the extraordinary shapes these nebulae can assume.”
“As a bipolar nebula, the Butterfly Nebula has two lobes extending in opposite directions, forming what resembles butterfly ‘wings’,” they continued.
“The dark band of dusty gas acts as the ‘body’ of the butterfly. This band is actually a donut-shaped torus that conceals the central star of the nebula.”
“Dusty donuts may indeed contribute to the insect-like shape of the nebula by hindering gas from escaping outward from the star uniformly.”
New images from Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) offer a close-up view of the center of the Butterfly Nebula and its dusty torus, revealing its complex structure like never before.
Astronomers have detected nearly 200 spectral lines, each providing insights into the nebula’s atoms and molecules.
These lines uncover nested interconnected structures tracked by various species.
Researchers have also pinpointed the central star in the Butterfly Nebula, which heats a previously undetected dust cloud surrounding it, causing it to emit bright light at mid-infrared wavelengths.
The star boasts a temperature of 220,000 Kelvin, making it one of the hottest known central stars in the galaxy’s planetary nebulae.
This image takes viewers diving deep into the heart of the Butterfly Nebula, as seen by Webb. Image credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/WEBB/M. MATSUURA/ALMA/ESO/NAOJ/NRAO/N. HIRANO/M. ZAMANI.
“This incredible, radiant engine is responsible for the stunning brilliance of the nebula, yet its full effect is moderated by the dense band of thin gas, the torus, that surrounds it,” the author noted.
“New data from Webb reveals that the torus comprises crystalline silicates such as quartz and irregularly shaped dust particles.”
“Dust grains measure about one millionth of a meter, typical for space dust.”
“Beyond the torus, emissions from various atoms and molecules form multilayer structures.”
“Ions needing the highest energy to form cluster near the center, while those requiring less energy are positioned farther away from the central star.”
“Iron and nickel are particularly noteworthy, following jets that erupt outward from the star in opposite directions.”
In an intriguing finding, the team also identified light emitted by carbon-based molecules known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
“These molecules have a flat, ring-like configuration, reminiscent of honeycomb shapes found in beehives,” said the astronomer.
“On Earth, PAHs are often present in smoke from campfires, vehicle exhausts, or burnt toast.”
“Given their location, these PAHs likely form when the winds from the central star push against the surrounding gas.”
“This discovery marks the first evidence of PAH formation in oxygen-rich planetary nebulae, offering a glimpse into the processes behind their formation.”
Survey results were published this week in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
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Mikako Matsumura et al. 2025. JWST/MIRI view of Planetary Nebula NGC 6302 – I. UV irradiated torus and hot bubbles cause PAH formation. mnras 542(2):1287-1307; doi:10.1093/mnras/staf1194
The stunning new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope reveals intriguing details of the Tarantula Nebula, a dynamic region of star formation located in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
This Hubble image showcases part of the Tarantula Nebula, located about 163,000 light years away in the Dorado constellation. The colorful image is a composite of various exposures captured by Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) across ultraviolet, near-infrared, and spectral optical ranges. It is based on data collected using four different filters. Colors have been assigned by applying various hues to each monochromatic image produced by the individual filters. Image credits: NASA/ESA/Hubble/C. Murray.
The Tarantula Nebula is situated roughly 163,000 light years from the southern constellation of Dorado.
Also known as NGC 2070 or 30 Dorados, this nebula is part of the expansive Magellanic Cloud, which is one of our closest galactic neighbors.
The nebula’s brilliant glow was first observed in 1751 by French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille.
At its core lies some of the most massive stars known, with some reaching up to 200 solar masses, making this region ideal for studying how gas clouds collapse under gravitational forces to give rise to new stars.
“The Tarantula Nebula is the largest and brightest area of star formation not only within the Large Magellanic Cloud but also among the entire group of nearby galaxies that include the Milky Way,” astronomers associated with Hubble stated.
“Within the nebula are some of the most massive stars discovered, some of which are approximately 200 times the mass of our Sun.”
“The scene depicted here is located far from the nebula’s center, where the superstar cluster known as R136 resides, but is quite close to a rare star called the Wolf-Rayet Star.”
“The Wolf-Rayet star is an enormous star that has shed its outer hydrogen layers; it is extremely hot, bright, and generates a dense, powerful wind,” they elaborated.
The Tarantula Nebula is frequently observed by Hubble, and its multi-wavelength capabilities play a crucial role in capturing the intricate details of the nebula’s dusty cloud formations.
“The data used to produce this image come from an observational program known as Scylla, which is named after the multi-faceted sea monster from the Greek mythology of Ulysses,” the astronomer noted.
“The Scylla program was developed to complement another Hubble observational initiative called Ulysses (the Ultraviolet Legacy Library of Young Stars as a fundamental criterion).”
“While Ulysses focuses on giant young stars in the small Magellanic Cloud, Scylla explores the gas and dust structures surrounding these stars.”
Astronomers employing the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have captured an impressive image of the reflective nebula GN 04.32.8.
This Hubble image showcases GN 04.32.8, a reflective nebula located in the constellation Taurus, approximately 480 light years distant. The color composite was formed from images captured in visible and near-infrared light, utilizing data obtained through two filters. Different hues are assigned to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credits: NASA/ESA/Hubble/G.Duchêne.
GN 04.32.8 is situated around 480 light years from the constellation Taurus.
Also referred to as DG 41, it forms a small segment of the stellar nursery known as the Taurus Molecular Cloud.
“Reflective nebulae are composed of dust clouds in space that do not produce their own light, unlike other types of nebulae,” an expert stated.
“Light from nearby stars illuminates them by scattering off the dust.”
“Due to this scattering effect, many reflective nebulae, including GN 04.32.8, often appear blue.”
GN 04.32.8 is illuminated by a trio of bright stars at the heart of the Hubble image, chiefly the variable star V1025 Tauri.
“One of these stars partially overlaps with the nebula. This is another variable star called HP Tauri, classified among the stars in Tauri, thus resembling other varieties of stars found in the broader molecular complex in Taurus,” the astronomer explained.
“It’s not unusual for T-Tauri stars to inhabit such prolific stellar nursery environments, as they are very dynamic and turbulent in their early evolutionary stages.”
“The three stars are known as HP Tau, HP Tau G2, and HP Tau G3 and are believed to be gravitationally bound, forming a triple system.”
“Observers with keen eyes might spot a small, crushed orange area just outside the center, beneath the nebula, which intersects with dark lines,” the researchers noted.
“This marks a newly formed protostar, concealed within a protoplanetary disk that obscures some of its light.”
“Disks like these are ideal subjects for study because they are oriented edge-on from our viewpoint.”
“We are utilizing Hubble to investigate this phenomenon and to glean insights about the types of exoplanets that could form within such disks.”
Astronomers utilizing the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope capture breathtaking views of a significant section of the nebula within the Large Magellanic Cloud, the largest of several small satellite galaxies orbiting the Milky Way.
This Hubble image illustrates a segment of the vivid nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy situated 160,000 light-years away in the constellations Dorado and Mensa. Image credits: NASA/ESA/Hubble/C. Murray.
This latest image was created using individual exposures captured across ultraviolet, visible, and infrared wavelengths. Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) was instrumental in this achievement.
“This portrayal of the dust-laden gas clouds within the Large Magellanic Cloud is made possible by Hubble’s advanced cameras, particularly the WFC3, which collected these observations,” stated Hubble astronomers.
“The WFC3 features an array of filters, each allowing light of a specific wavelength or color to pass through.”
“The image is a composite from five different filters, including one designed to capture ultraviolet and infrared radiation, which is invisible to the human eye.”
“The delicate gas clouds depicted resemble colorful cotton candy,” remarked the researchers.
“When encountering a cosmic scene with such vivid hues, it’s only natural to question the authenticity of these colors.”
“After all, the Hubble is equipped with a 2.4m diameter mirror and sophisticated scientific instruments, unlike typical cameras!”
“As image processing experts merge the raw filtered data into these multi-colored representations, they assign distinct colors to each filter.”
“Observations in visible light correspond to the colors passed through the respective filter.”
“Shorter light wavelengths, like ultraviolet rays, typically appear blue or purple, whereas longer wavelengths, such as infrared rays, are usually depicted as red.”
“This color scheme closely mirrors reality, revealing new insights from parts of the electromagnetic spectrum that are invisible to human eyes.”
“Nevertheless, countless color combinations can be employed to create images that are not only aesthetically striking but also scientifically valuable.”
The two central stars of the NGC 1514 are displayed as one of the images from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope, forming this scene for thousands of years and maintaining it for thousands more.
This web image shows the planetary nebula NGC 1514. Image credits: NASA/ESA/CSA/STSCI/Michael Ressler, JPL/Dave Jones, IAC.
NGC 1514 It is about 1,500 light years away from the Taurus sign.
The object, also known as the Crystal Ball Nebula, was discovered on November 13th, 1790 by German and British astronomer William Herschel.
He pointed out that NGC 1514 was the first deep sky object that really looked cloudy. He couldn’t resolve what he saw on individual stars in the cluster, like other objects he catalogued.
The ring around NGC 1514 was discovered in 2010, but Webb is now allowing astronomers to comprehensively examine the nature of the turbulent flow of this nebula.
“This scene has been formed for at least four,000 years and will continue to change over a thousand years,” Webb Astronomers said in a statement.
“In the center there are two stars that appear as one in Webb observations, caused by vivid diffraction spikes.”
“The star follows a solid, elongated nine-year orbit, covered in an arc of dust, represented by orange.”
“One of these stars, once a massive scale several times larger than our sun, played the lead role in producing this scene.”
“When the outer layers of the star were exhausted, only the hot, compact core was left behind.”
“As a white dwarf star, its winds rose sharply and weakened, and could have blown away the material into a thin shell.”
New Webb observations show that the nebula is at a 60-degree angle, which makes it appear that the can is poured in, but it is much more likely that the NGC 1514 took the shape of an hourglass and dropped the edges.
“Look for pinchwaist hints near the top left and bottom right. The dust is orange and drifts in a shallow V-shaped shape,” the astronomer said.
“When the star reached its peak of losing material, our peers may have become very close and have had these unusual shapes.”
“Instead of creating a sphere, this interaction may have instead formed a ring.”
“The NGC 1514’s outline is most clear, but the hourglass also has some sides of the 3D shape.”
“Look for a dim, translucent orange cloud between the rings that give to the nebula body.”
Nebula’s two rings are illuminated unevenly by Webb’s observations, appearing to be more diffused at the bottom left and top right.
Researchers believe that the rings are primarily made up of very small dust grains. This will get hot enough for Webb to detect when hit by ultraviolet rays from a white star star.
“In addition to dust, Webb revealed oxygen in its chunky pink center, especially at the edges of the bubbles and holes,” they said.
Officially named Kohoutek 4-55, this little-known planetary nebula is located within our Milky Way galaxy.
This Hubble image shows Kohoutek 4-55, a nebula of planets 4,600 light years away in the Cygnus constellation. Image credits: NASA/ESA/Hubble/K. Noll.
“The Nebula of Planets is a spectacular final exhibition at the end of the life of a giant star,” Hubble Astherm said in a statement.
“When the giant red star runs out of available fuel and flows the final gas layer, its compact core shrinks further, allowing for a final burst of fusion.”
“The exposed core reaches very high temperatures and emits very energetic UV rays, activating a huge cloud of casting gas.”
“Molecules in the gas are ionized and brighten.”
“Here, red and orange represent nitrogen molecules, green represent hydrogen, and blue represent nebulae oxygen.”
Kohoutek 4-55 is located approximately 4,600 light years away from the Cygnus constellation.
Also known as UHA 15 or G084.2+01.0, this nebula has an unusual multilayered form.
“The bright inner ring of the Kohoutek 4-55 is surrounded by a loose layer of gas, all wrapped in a wide halo of ionized nitrogen,” the astronomer said.
“The view is bittersweet. The short phase of the fusion of the cores ends tens of thousands of years, leaving behind a white dwarf who will never illuminate the surrounding clouds again.”
This image of Kohoutek 4-55 was captured by Hubble’s Widefield and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2).
“Installed in 1993 to replace the original Widefield and Planetary Camera (WFPC), WFPC2 was responsible for some of Hubble’s most persistent images and fascinating discoveries,” the researchers said.
“It was replaced in 2009 by Widefield Camera 3 (WFC3) during Hubble’s final service mission.”
“The data in this image was collected 10 days before the instrument was removed from the telescope, as a proper postponement for WFPC2,” he said.
“The latest and most advanced processing techniques are used to bring data to life once more, creating this breathtaking new view of Kohoutek 4-55.”
Astronomers using the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope investigated the lowest mass limits of brown dwarfs within Flame Nebula, a hotbed of star formation in Orion’s constellation.
A collage of this image from the Flame Nebula shows a view of near-infrared light from Hubble on the left, while the two insets on the right show the near-infrared view taken by Webb. Image credits: NASA/ESA/CSA/M. Meyer, University of Michigan/A. Pagan, Stsci.
Flame Nebula It is about 1,400 light years away from Orion’s constellation.
Also known as NGC 2024 and SH2-277, this ejection nebula is about 12 light years wide and is less than a million years.
The Flame Nebula was discovered on January 1, 1786 by British astronomer William Herschel, born in Germany.
It is part of the Orion molecular cloud complex and includes famous nebulae such as the Hosehead Nebula and the Orion Nebula.
In a new study, astronomers used Webb to explore the lowest mass limits of brown dwarfs within the flame nebula.
The results, they found, were free-floating objects with mass about 2-3 times the mass of Jupiter.
“The goal of this project was to explore the fundamental low-mass limits of the star- and brown dwarf formation process,” said Dr. Matthew De Julio, an astronomer at the University of Texas at Austin.
“Webb allows you to investigate the faintest and lowest mass objects.”
The low mass limits that the required teams are looking for are set by a process known as fragmentation.
In this process, the large molecular clouds that produce both star and brown dwarfs are broken down into smaller units or fragments.
Fragmentation relies heavily on several factors where temperature, thermo-pressure, and gravity balance are the most important.
More specifically, as fragments contract under gravity, their cores become hot.
If the core is large enough, the hydrogen starts to fuse.
The outward pressure created by that fusion counters gravity, stops collapse and stabilizes the object.
However, the core is not compact, it is hot enough to burn hydrogen, and continues to shrink as long as it emits internal heat.
This near-infrared image of a portion of the Webb flame nebula highlights three low-mass objects found in the right inset. Image credits: NASA/ESA/CSA/STSCI/M. MEYER, University of Michigan.
“We’ve seen a lot of effort into making it,” said Dr. Michael Meyer, an astronomer at the University of Michigan.
“If the clouds cool efficiently, they collapse and fall apart.”
When the fragment becomes opaque enough to reabsorb its own radiation, fragmentation stops, thereby stopping cooling and preventing further decay.
The theory places the lower bounds of these fragments between 1-10 Jupiter masses.
This study significantly reduces its scope as the Webb census counted fragments of different masses within the nebulae.
“As we found in many previous studies, going to a lower mass actually increases the amount of objects about ten times as much as Jupiter’s mass,” Dr. Deirio said.
“Studies using Webb are sensitive to Jupiter up to 0.5 times the mass of Jupiter, and as they get below 10 times the mass of Jupiter, there are considerably fewer.”
“We discovered that there are fewer 5 Jupiter Mass objects than the Ten Jupiter Mass object, and we can see that there are fewer 3 Jupiter Mass objects than the 5 Jupiter Mass objects.”
“We don’t actually find any objects below the mass of two or three Jupiter. We’re hoping to see if they’re there, so we’re assuming this could be the limit itself.”
“For the first time, Webb was able to investigate beyond that limit,” added Dr. Meyer.
“If that limitation is real, there really is no object of 1 Jupiter mass that floats freely in our Milky Way galaxies, unless it forms as a planet and is kicked out of the planetary system.”
a paper Regarding the survey results, Astrophysics Journal Letter.
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Matthew de Julio et al. 2025. Identification of sales in the initial mass function of young star clusters up to 0.5 mJ. apjl 981, L34; doi: 10.3847/2041-8213/ADB96A
The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope produced excellent images of a small portion of the Veil Nebula, part of the remnants of a supernova called the Cygnus loop.
This Hubble image shows part of the Veil Nebula. Image credits: NASA/ESA/Hubble/R. Sankrit.
Cygnus loop It is a large donut-shaped nebula located approximately 2,400 light years from Earth.
Also known as the W78 and Sharpless 103, it is actually an explosive blast from a supernova explosion that occurred 10,000 to 20,000 years ago.
Its name comes from the position of the northern constellations of Cygnus and covers an area 36 times the full moon.
The visual part of the supernova remains is known as the veil nebula, also known as the caterpillar or filamentous nebula.
“This nebula is about 20 times more star remnants than the sun that exploded 10,000 to 20,000 years ago,” said Hubble astronomers.
This new image consists of observations from Hubble Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) Optical part of the spectrum.
“This view combines images taken with three different filters to highlight the release from hydrogen, sulfur and oxygen atoms,” the astronomer said.
“The image shows just a small part of the Veil Nebula. If we could see the entire nebula without the help of a telescope, it would be as wide as six full moons were placed side by side.”
“The image captures the Veil Nebula at just one point, but it helps researchers understand how the remnants of the supernova have evolved over the decades.”
“Combining this snapshot with Hubble observations from 1994 reveals the movement of individual knots and gas filaments over that time, improving our understanding of this stunning nebula.”
The Tarantula Nebula is the most important star-forming complex in local galaxy groups, including the Milky Way, the large Magellan cloud and the Andromeda galaxy. At its heart is the highly rich young star cluster R136, which contains the most huge known stars. The stellar wind and supernova carved the tarantula nebula into an astonishing display of arcs, pillars and bubbles.
This image of Chandra shows the Tarantula Nebula. Image credits: NASA/CXC/Penn State/Townsley et al.
The Tarantula Nebula is approximately 170,000 light years away from the southern constellation of Dorado.
The nebula, also known as the NGC 2070 or 30 Dorados, is part of the large Magellan cloud.
“The Tarantula Nebula is the most powerful and large star-forming region in the local galaxy group,” says Matthew Povich, astronomers at Polytechnic University in California, and Pennsylvania State University astronomers Raysa Townsley and Patrick Brose. I said that.
“The nebulae differ from the massive star-forming regions of the Milky Way galaxy. There is no different galactic rotation to tear the complex, so it provides fuel for at least 25 million years to supply large star-forming. It lasts and grows at the confluence of two super-huge shells, reaching a starburst percentage.”
“Today, it is dominated by a central large cluster R136, 1-2 million years ago, and includes the wealthiest young star population of the local group, and the largest star included It's here.”
“In contrast to the large star-forming regions of the galaxy, the location of the large Magellan tarantula nebula provides a low metallic starburst laboratory with low absorption and well-known distances. I'll do that.”
New X-ray images of the tarantula nebula contain data from the large Chandra program, including observation times of approximately 23 days, with Chandra previously performed in the nebula for over 1.3 days.
The 3,615 x-ray sources detected by Chandra include large stars, double star systems, bright stars still in the process of formation, and much smaller clusters of young stars.
The authors also identified the oldest X-ray pulsar candidate ever detected in Tarantula Nebula, PSR J0538-6902.
“There are a ton of diffuse hot gases found in x-rays that come from various sources that arise from the giant star winds and gases expelled by supernova explosions,” the astronomer said.
“This dataset is ideal for the near future to study diffuse X-ray emissions in star-forming regions.”
A new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows two protostars in the Orion Nebula, a diffuse nebula located about 1,350 light-years away in the constellation Orion.
This Hubble image shows two protostars, HOPS 150 and HOPS 153, within the famous Orion Nebula. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / T. Megeath.
The Orion Nebula is visible to the naked eye as a fuzzy speck surrounding the Hunter's Sword star Theta Orionis, below Orion's belt.
This nebula has been known as a star since the beginning of astronomical records, but it is so remarkable that it was first recognized as an expanded nebula in 1610, just one year after Galileo Galilei first used a telescope. It got attention.
Detailed descriptions of the Orion Nebula began to appear in the late 17th century, and it has been a popular target for anyone with a telescope ever since.
Also known as NGC 1976, Messier 42, M42, LBN 974, and Sharpless 281, this nebula is about 24 light-years long.
Only two million years old, this object is an ideal laboratory for studying young and nascent stars.
It offers a glimpse of what happened when the sun was born 4.6 billion years ago.
“The Orion Nebula is home to hundreds of newborn stars, including the protostars HOPS 150 and HOPS 153, the subject of this image,” Hubble astronomers said in a statement.
“The names of these protostars come from the Herschel Orion Protostar Survey, conducted in collaboration with ESA's Herschel Space Observatory.”
“The object visible in the upper right corner of this image is HOPS 150. It is a binary star system, with two young protostars orbiting each other.”
“Each animal has a small dusty disk around it from which it gets its nutrition.”
“A dark line across the bright glow of these protostars is a cloud of gas and dust more than 2,000 times wider than the distance between Earth and the Sun that dips into the pair of protostars.”
“Based on the amount of infrared light emitted by HOPS 150 and the light at other wavelengths, we can see that the protostar is on its way to becoming a mature star.”
“Extending to the left of the image is a narrow, colorful outflow called a jet. This jet comes out of frame from the nearby protostar HOPS 153,” they said.
“HOPS 153 is a much younger object than its neighbors, still deeply embedded in its birth nebula and shrouded in a cold, dense cloud of gas.”
“Hubble can't penetrate this gas to see protostars, but the jets released by HOPS 153 appear bright as they plow into the gas and dust surrounding the Orion nebula.”
“The transition from a tightly wrapped protostar to a full-fledged star will have a dramatic impact on the surroundings of HOPS 153.”
“When gas falls into a protostar, its jets spew matter and energy into interstellar space, creating bubbles and heating the gas.”
“By stirring up and warming nearby gas, HOPS 153 may control the formation of new stars in its vicinity and even slow its own growth.”
Astronomers using the VLT survey telescope at ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile 283 million pixel image of the Dark Wolf Nebula.
This image was taken by ESO’s VLT survey telescope and shows the Dark Wolf Nebula. Image credit: ESO / VPHAS+ Team.
The Dark Wolf Nebula is located approximately 5,300 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius.
“Dark nebulae are cold clouds of cosmic dust so dense that they obscure the light of stars and other celestial bodies behind them,” ESO astronomers said in a statement.
“As its name suggests, it does not emit visible light, unlike other nebulae.”
“The dust grains within it absorb visible light and only allow longer wavelength radiation, such as infrared radiation, to pass through.”
“Astronomers study these frozen dust clouds because they often contain new stars that are being born.”
“This image occupies an area of the sky equivalent to four full moons, but it is actually part of a much larger nebula called . gum 55” said the astronomers.
“If you look closely, the wolf may even be a werewolf, and its hands are trying to grab unsuspecting bystanders.”
“Of course, tracking the ghostly presence of a wolf in the sky is only possible because of its contrast with the bright background.”
“This image shows in stunning detail how the dark wolf stands out among the glowing clouds that form the stars behind it.”
“The colorful clouds are composed primarily of hydrogen gas, which glows with a reddish hue when excited by intense ultraviolet light from newborn stars.”
This image was taken as part of the VST Photometric Hα Survey of the Southern Galactic Plane and Bulge (VPHAS+), which is studying about 500 million objects in the Milky Way.
“Studies like this help scientists better understand the life cycles of stars in our home galaxy,” the researchers said.
Nestled within the fiery petals of the Rosette Nebula is NGC 2244, a young star cluster that the Rosette Nebula nurtured. Image credits: CTIO / NOIRLab / DOE / NSF / AURA / TA University of Alaska Anchorage Chancellor and NSF's NOIRLab / D. de Martin and M. Zamani, NSF's NOIRLab.
of rosette nebula It exists in the constellation Monoceros, about 5,000 light-years from Earth.
Also known as Caldwell 49, CTB 21, SH 2-275, or W 16, the object spans 1.3 degrees in the sky, about the width of your index finger at arm's length.
The diameter of the rosette nebula is 130 light years — More than five times the size of the Orion Nebula.
The former are four times as far apart, so their apparent sizes are similar.
“As striking as the nebula's 'petals' is the striking absence of gas at its center,” NOIRLab astronomers said in a statement.
“The culprits who drilled this hollow core are the most massive stars. NGC2244 -An open star cluster nurtured by a nebula. ”
“This cluster was formed about 2 million years ago after the nebula's gases coalesced into clumps due to their mutual gravity.”
“Eventually, some of the clumps grew into giant stars, producing stellar winds powerful enough to punch a hole in the center of the nebula.”
“NGC 2244's massive star also emits ultraviolet light, which ionizes the surrounding hydrogen gas and illuminates the nebula with vibrant colors,” the astronomers said.
“The undulating red cloud is a region of H-alpha radiation originating from high-energy hydrogen atoms that emit red light.”
“Along the walls of the central cavity and closer to the central giant star, the radiation has enough energy to ionize heavy atoms like oxygen, causing it to glow in shades of gold or yellow.”
“Finally, along the edges of the petals, thin tendrils of deep pink glow with light emitted from the ionized silicon.”
The bright, glowing features of the Rosette Nebula are certainly impressive. But its dark and shadowy features also attract attention.
“Surrounding the excavated core of this nebula is a series of dark clouds called 'elephant trunks', so named because of their trunk-like pillars,” the researchers said. .
“These structures are opaque because they contain invisible dust and form a boundary between the hot shell of ionized hydrogen and the cold hydrogen surrounding environment.”
“As the shell expands outward, it encounters a cold, clumpy gas that resists its push.”
“This forms an elongated trunk, the length of which extends like fingers towards the central cluster.”
“One of these dark features is the wrench trunk: its claw-like head visible in the upper right corner of the central cluster.”
“Unlike the typical Pillar of Creation trunk, which stands like a straight column, the wrench's 'handle' has an unusual spiral shape that traces the nebula's magnetic field.”
“Less obvious, but equally interesting, is the dark globlet.”
“These tiny dust clumps, sometimes round and sometimes teardrop-shaped, are smaller than the familiar globules and have a mass just a few times that of Jupiter.”
“We see a series of them near Wrench Trunk, but hundreds more are scattered throughout the Rosette Nebula.”
“These spherules could contain brown dwarfs or planets.”
“In about 10 million years, radiation from the hot, young stars in the NGC 2244 cluster will obliterate the nebula.”
“By then, the rosette will be gone and the giant stars will be left without their parent clouds.”
NGC 261 is located within the Small Magellanic Cloud, one of the Milky Way's closest neighbors.
This Hubble Space Telescope image shows the diffuse nebula NGC 261, about 200,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Sivir. Image courtesy of NASA/ESA/LC Johnson, Northwestern University/Gladys Kober, NASA and The Catholic University of America.
NGC 261 It is a diffuse nebula located about 200,000 light years away in the constellation Tetranychus.
The object, also known as Brook 42, ESO 29-12, and IRAS 00447-7322, Found It was discovered on September 5, 1826 by Scottish astronomer James Dunlop.
“The ionized gas burning up from within this diffuse region characterizes NGC 261 as an emission nebula,” the Hubble astronomers said.
“The stars are so hot that they irradiate the surrounding hydrogen gas, giving the clouds a pinkish-red glow.”
The Hubble Space Telescope has turned its keen eye to NGC 261 to study how efficiently stars form within molecular clouds, extremely dense regions of gas and dust.
“These clouds are often composed of large amounts of molecular hydrogen and are the cold regions where most stars form,” the researchers explained.
“But molecular hydrogen is poorly radiative, making it difficult to measure this fuel for star formation in stellar nurseries.”
“Because they're difficult to detect, scientists instead track other molecules present within the molecular cloud.”
“The Small Magellanic Cloud contains a gas-rich environment of young stars, as well as traces of carbon monoxide, which correlates with hydrogen and is a chemical often used to confirm the presence of such clouds.”
“The combined powers of the ACS and WFC3 instruments allowed us to probe the star formation properties of the nebula through its carbon monoxide content at visible and near-infrared wavelengths,” the scientists said.
“This work helps us better understand how stars form in our host galaxy and in our Galactic neighbours.”
These protostellar outflows form when jets of gas from the newborn star collide with nearby gas and dust at high speeds, and the objects typically point in different directions within a single region. Serpens NebulaBut like sleet falling during a storm, they all lean in the same direction and to the same degree.
This Webb image shows a collection of outflows from a line of protostars in one small region (upper left corner) of the Ophiuchus Nebula. Image credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / STScI / K. Pontoppidan, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory / J. Green, Space Telescope Science Institute.
“So how does the alignment of a stellar jets relate to the star's rotation?” said Webb.
“When interstellar gas clouds collapse to form stars, they rotate faster.”
“The only way for the gas to keep moving inward is to remove some of its spin (called angular momentum).”
“A disk of material forms around the young star, carrying material downward like a vortex around a drain.”
“The swirling magnetic fields within the inner disk cause some of the material to be ejected as twin jets, erupting outward in opposite directions, perpendicular to the disk of material.”
“In Webb's images, these jets are identified by bright red lumpy streaks, which are shock waves created when the jets collide with the surrounding gas and dust.”
“Here, the red color indicates the presence of molecular hydrogen and carbon monoxide.”
“Webb will be able to image these very young stars and their outflows, which have previously been blocked at visible wavelengths of light.”
“There are several forces that can change the direction of the outflow during this period in the young star's life.”
“One way is that the binary stars rotate around each other, causing them to wobble, twisting the direction of the outflow over time.”
The Serpens Nebula is a so-called reflection nebula located about 1,300 light-years away in the constellation Serpens.
The object is estimated to be between 1 and 2 million years old, making it very young in cosmic terms.
“The Serpens Nebula contains a particularly dense cluster of protostellar clusters (approximately 100,000 years old) at the center of this image, some of which will eventually grow to the mass of the Sun,” the astronomers said.
“It's a reflection nebula, meaning it's a cloud of gas and dust that doesn't emit its own light but glows by reflecting light from nearby and internal stars.”
“Thus, throughout the field of this image, the filaments and lint of different hues represent reflected light from protostars still forming within the cloud.”
“In some areas there is dust in front of that reflection, which shows up here as a diffuse shade of orange.”
“There have been several other serendipitous discoveries in the region, including the shadow of a flapping bat, so named because 2020 data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope revealed it to be flapping, or migrating. This feature is visible in the centre of the Webb image.”
The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has provided stunning new images of the Crab Nebula, containing the highest-quality infrared data yet available to help astronomers investigate the detailed structure and chemical composition of this supernova remnant.
Webb's detailed analysis of the Crab Nebula's structure has helped astronomers continue to evaluate the leading theories about the origin of supernova remnants. Image credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI/T. Temim, Princeton University.
The Crab Nebula is the result of a supernova explosion observed in 1054 AD by Chinese, Japanese, Arab and Native American astronomers.
Bright enough to be seen in amateur telescopes, this beautiful nebula lies 6,500 light-years away in the constellation Taurus.
Also known as Messier 1, NGC 1952, or Taurus A, the galaxy was first identified in 1731 by British astronomer, physician, and electrical researcher John Bevis.
In 1758, French astronomer Charles Messier rediscovered the faint nebula while searching for comets, and later added it to his celestial catalog as a “false comet” named Messier 1.
The nebula got its name from an 1844 drawing by Irish astronomer Lord Rosse.
The Crab Nebula is extremely unusual: its atypical composition and extremely low explosion energy had previously led astronomers to believe it was an electron-capture supernova, a rare type of explosion that occurs from a star with a less-evolved core made of oxygen, neon, and magnesium, rather than the more common iron nucleus.
Previous studies have calculated the total kinetic energy of the explosion based on the volume and velocity of the current ejecta.
Astronomers have estimated that the explosion had a relatively low energy (less than one-tenth the energy of a typical supernova) and that the source star's mass was in the range of eight to ten times that of the Sun, lying on the fine line between stars that undergo violent supernova explosions and those that do not.
However, there are contradictions between the electron capture supernova theory and observations of the Scorpio Nebula, especially the observed rapid motion of the pulsar.
In recent years, astronomers have also come to understand more about iron-collapse supernovae, leading them to believe that these types of supernovae could also produce low-energy explosions if the star's mass is low enough.
To reduce uncertainties about the nature of the Crab Nebula's protostar and explosion, Tee Temim of Princeton University and his colleagues used Webb's spectroscopy capabilities to zero in on two regions within the Crab Nebula's inner filament.
Theory predicts that due to the different chemical composition of the cores of electron capture supernovae, the abundance ratio of nickel to iron (Ni/Fe) should be much higher than that measured in the Sun, which contains these elements from earlier generations of stars.
Studies in the 1980s and early 1990s used optical and near-infrared data to measure the Ni/Fe ratios in the Crab Nebula and recorded high Ni/Fe abundances that seemed to favor an electron capture supernova scenario.
With its sensitive infrared capabilities, the Webb Telescope is currently advancing research into the Crab Nebula.
The study authors leveraged Webb's spectroscopic capabilities. Milli (mid-infrared instrument) to measure nickel and iron emission lines to get a more reliable estimate of the Ni/Fe abundance ratio.
They found that while this ratio is still high compared to the Sun, it is only slightly higher and much lower than previous estimates.
The revised value is consistent with electron capture, but does not exclude the possibility of iron-collapse explosions from low-mass stars as well.
High-energy explosions from more massive stars would produce Ni/Fe ratios closer to the solar abundance.
Further observational and theoretical work will be needed to distinguish between these two possibilities.
Webb extracted spectral data from two small regions within the Crab Nebula to measure abundances, and also observed the remnant's larger environment to understand the details of synchrotron radiation and dust distribution.
The images and data collected by MIRI allowed astronomers to isolate dust emissions within the Crab Nebula and map them in high resolution for the first time.
“By mapping the warm dust emissions with Webb and combining it with data on cold dust particles from NASA's Herschel Space Telescope, we have created a comprehensive picture of the dust distribution, with the outermost filaments containing relatively warm dust and cold particles spread out near the center,” the team said.
a paper The paper on the survey results is Astrophysical Journal Letters.
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Teatemimu others2024. JWST analysis of the Crab Nebula: Ni/Fe abundance constraints on pulsar winds, dust filaments, and explosion mechanisms. Apu JL 968, L18; Source: 10.3847/2041-8213/ad50d1
RCW 7 is located in the constellation Puppis, about 5,300 light years from Earth.
This Hubble image shows the nebula RCW 7. Image courtesy of NASA/ESA/Hubble/J. Tan, Chalmers University, University of Virginia.
“Nebulae are regions of space that are rich in the raw materials needed to form new stars,” the Hubble astronomers said.
“Due to the effects of gravity, some of these molecular clouds collapse and merge into protostars surrounded by a rotating disk of remaining gas and dust.”
“In the case of RCW 7, the protostar forming here is particularly massive, emitting intense ionizing radiation and a powerful stellar wind that propelled the star into a “H II region“.
“The H II regions are filled with hydrogen ions. HI refers to regular hydrogen atoms, and H II is hydrogen that has lost an electron.”
“Ultraviolet rays from the massive protostar excite the hydrogen, which then emits light that gives the nebula its soft pink glow.”
“IRAS 07299-1651 still resides within a cocoon of glowing gas, in clouds swirling towards the top of the nebula,” the researchers said.
To expose this star and its sibling, the new image was created from separate exposures taken in the near-infrared region of the spectrum. Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3).
“This massive protostar is most bright in ultraviolet light, but it also emits a lot of infrared light that penetrates much of the surrounding gas and dust and can be seen by the Hubble Telescope,” the scientists said.
“Many of the other large visible stars in this image are not part of the nebula, but are located between the nebula and the solar system.”
Assuming a circular orbit, IRAS 07299-1651 is estimated to have a minimum total mass of 18 times that of the Sun and a maximum period of 570 years.
“The formation of the H II region marks the beginning of the end of the molecular cloud,” the authors said.
“Over just a few million years, radiation and winds from the massive stars gradually disperse the gas, and this dispersion continues as the most massive stars end their lives in supernova explosions.”
“Only a small portion of this gas will be absorbed by new stars within the nebula, while the rest will spread throughout the galaxy and eventually form new molecular clouds.”
Astronomers using the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope have captured the most detailed images ever of the Horsehead Nebula, one of the most distinctive objects in our sky.
At the bottom of this Web/NIRCam image, a small portion of the Horsehead Nebula is visible up close as a curved wall of thick, smoky gas and dust. Above the nebula, various distant stars and galaxies can be seen all the way to the top of the image. Image credits: NASA / CSA / ESA / Webb / K. Misselt, University of Arizona / A. Abergel, IAS, Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS.
The Horsehead Nebula is located in the constellation Orion, about 1,500 light-years from Earth.
Also known as Barnard 33, this nebula is visible only because its indistinct dust is silhouetted against the brighter nebula IC 434.
The Horsehead Nebula is just one small feature of the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex, with the glowing Flame Nebula dominating the center of this view.
The nebula was first recorded by Scottish astronomer Williamna Fleming on February 6, 1888.
The object is formed by a collapsing cloud of interstellar matter and shines in the light of a nearby hot star.
The gas cloud surrounding the horsehead has now disappeared, but the protruding columns are made of stronger material that is less erodible.
Astronomers estimate that the Horsehead Formation has about 5 million years left to collapse.
The new image from the web focuses on the upper illuminated edge of the nebula’s characteristic dust and gas structures.
This Webb/MIRI image is more than half filled from bottom to top with a small section of the Horsehead Nebula. Image credits: NASA / CSA / ESA / Webb / K. Misselt, University of Arizona / A. Abergel, IAS, Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS.
“In such regions, ultraviolet light from young massive stars creates a region of warm, nearly neutral gas and dust between the fully ionized gas around the massive star and the clouds they are born into. .”
“This UV radiation has a strong effect on the gas chemistry in these regions and acts as the most important heat source.”
“These regions occur where the interstellar gas is concentrated enough to remain neutral, but not dense enough to prevent the transmission of deep ultraviolet light from massive stars.”
“Light emitted from such PDRs will be used to study the physical and chemical processes that drive the evolution of the interstellar medium in our galaxy and throughout the universe from the early days of active star formation to the present day. We provide unique tools for
“The Horsehead Nebula, due to its close proximity and near-edge-on geometry, provides an opportunity for astronomers to study the physical structure of the PDR and the evolution of the chemical properties of gas and dust within their respective environments and transition regions. is an ideal target for “among them. “
“This is considered one of the best objects to study how radiation interacts with the interstellar medium.”
“Thanks to Mr. Webb. mm (mid-infrared measuring instrument) and NIRCam “We used (near-infrared camera) equipment to reveal for the first time small-scale structures at the end of an illuminated horsehead,” they said.
“We also detected a network of stripes extending perpendicular to the PDR front and containing dust particles and ionized gas entrained in the nebula's photoevaporative flow.”
“These observations allowed us to investigate the effects of dust attenuation and ejection, and to better understand the multidimensional shape of the nebula.”
“Next, we will study the spectroscopic data obtained from the nebula to demonstrate the evolution of the physical and chemical properties of the material observed throughout the nebula.”
of result appear in the diary astronomy and astrophysics.
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A. Abergel other. 2024. His JWST observations of the horsehead photon-dominated region I. First results from multiband near-infrared and mid-infrared imaging. A&A, in press. doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/202449198
The Running Chicken Nebula is made up of several clouds, all of which can be seen in this expansive image from the VLT Survey Telescope (VST) hosted at ESO’s Paranal Site. His 1.5 billion pixel image spans an area of the sky the size of about 25 full moons. The cloud, marked by a wispy pink plume, is filled with gas and dust and lit by young, hot stars within it. Credit: ESO/VPHAS+ Team. Acknowledgment: CASU
of ESO has released a detailed image of the Running Chicken Nebula, located 6,500 light-years away in the constellation Centauri. This 1.5 billion pixel image of his captured by VST highlights young stars and regions such as IC 2948 and IC 2944, providing a cosmic treat for the eyes.
Many holiday traditions include a feast of turkey, buckwheat, latkes, or pan de pascua, but this year the European Southern Observatory (ESO) is bringing you the holiday chicken. The so-called Running Chicken Nebula, home to the birth of young stars, is revealed in stunning detail in this 1.5 billion pixel image captured by the VLT Survey Telescope (VST) at ESO’s Paranal Site in Chile. It has become.
This vast stellar nursery is located in the constellation Centaurus, about 6,500 light-years from Earth. Young stars in this nebula emit intense radiation that makes the surrounding hydrogen gas glow pink.
The Running Chicken Nebula is actually made up of several regions, all of which can be seen in this vast image spanning an area of the sky the size of about 25 full moons.[1] The brightest region in the nebula is called IC 2948, where some people can see the head of a chicken, while others can see the back end. The wispy pastel outlines are fantastic plumes of gas and dust. His IC 2944 is characterized by a bright vertical, almost columnar structure towards the center of the image. The brightest sparkle in this particular area is lambda centauria star visible to the naked eye that is much closer to us than the nebula itself.
The Running Chicken Nebula is made up of several clouds, the most prominent of which are labeled in this expansive image from the VLT Survey Telescope (VST) hosted at ESO’s Paranal Site. The bright star, named Lambda Centauri, is actually much closer than the nebula itself and can be seen with the naked eye. The cloud, marked by a faint pink plume, is filled with gas and dust and lit by young, hot stars within it. In total, this image spans an area of about 25 full moons in the sky, one of which is shown to scale for reference. Credit: ESO/VPHAS+ Team. Acknowledgment: CASU
But IC 2948 and IC 2944 themselves are full of young stars. And while they may be bright, they are definitely not cheerful. They tear through the environment like chickens, spewing massive amounts of radiation. Some regions of the nebula, known as Bok globules, can withstand the intense assault of ultraviolet radiation that spreads through this region. If you zoom in on the image, you may see small, dark pockets of dense dust and gas scattered throughout the nebula.
Other areas pictured here include gums 39 and 40 in the upper right and gum 41 in the lower right. In addition to the nebula, the sky is filled with countless orange, white, and blue stars like fireworks. Overall, this image is a wonder that cannot be explained. Zooming in and moving around the screen can be a feast for the eyes.
This 3D animation of the Running Chicken Nebula imagines what it would be like to fly near a swirling cloud of gas and dust. This video is based on real images from the VLT Survey Telescope hosted on his Paranal site in ESO. However, the 3D positions of the stars shown here are for reference only. Credit: ESO/VPHAS+ Team. Acknowledgment: CASU
This image is a large mosaic made of hundreds of individual frames carefully stitched together. Individual images are taken through filters that pass different colors of light and combined into the final result shown here.Observations were made with a wide-field camera omega cam in VSTis a telescope owned by the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF) and hosted by ESO at the Paranal site in Chile’s Atacama Desert, perfect for mapping the southern sky in visible light. The data used to create this mosaic were acquired as part of his VST photometric Hα survey of the Southern Galactic Plane and Bulge (VPHAS+), a project aimed at better understanding the life cycle of stars.
This diagram shows the location of the Running Chicken Nebula (IC2944) in the large constellation south of the constellation Centaurus (Centaurus). This map shows most of the stars visible to the naked eye under good conditions, and the location of the nebula itself is marked with a red circle. Although the star cluster associated with this nebula, IC 2948, is easily seen with small telescopes, the nebula is very faint and was only discovered in photographs in the early 20th century. Credits: ESO, IAU, Sky & Telescope
Note
This image spans 270 light years from edge to edge. It takes the average chicken almost 21 billion years to run through it. That’s a long time since our universe has existed.
New images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument) reveal intriguing details of the Ring Nebula. These images show approximately 10 concentric arcs located just beyond the outer edge of the main ring, suggesting the presence of a low-mass companion star orbiting the central star at a distance similar to that between Earth and Pluto. Researchers from the Royal Observatory of Belgium, Griet van de Steene and Peter van Hof, are part of the international team of astronomers who released these breathtaking images. In their research paper, they analyze these features and discuss their implications for the star’s evolution.
The Ring Nebula, located about 2,200 light-years from Earth in the constellation Lyra, is a well-known and visually striking planetary nebula. It displays a donut-shaped structure consisting of glowing gas, which was shed by a dying star as it reached the end of its lifecycle. The web’s NIRCam (near-infrared camera) and MIRI instruments have captured stunning footage of the nebula, providing scientists with an opportunity to study and understand its complex structure.
The recent images obtained by the James Webb Space Telescope’s NIRCam reveal intricate details of the filamentary structure of the inner ring of the Ring Nebula. This inner region contains about 20,000 dense spherules and is rich in hydrogen molecules. Additionally, the outer region of the nebula contains a thin ring with enhanced emission from carbon-based molecules known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These details were analyzed and described in a research paper by Griet van de Steene, Peter van Hof, and their team.
The Webb images also show peculiar spikes extending outward from the central star on the outside of the ring. These spikes, observed in the infrared but faint in the visible spectrum captured by the Hubble Space Telescope, may be caused by molecules forming in the shadow of the densest part of the ring, shielded from direct radiation from the hot central star.
Furthermore, the researchers discovered 10 concentric arcs in a faint halo outside the ring. These arcs indicate the possible presence of a companion star orbiting at a distance similar to that between our Sun and Pluto. The interaction between the central star and this companion star may have shaped the nebula into its distinctive elliptical form.
The detailed images captured by the Webb telescope provide valuable insights into the process of stellar evolution. By studying the Ring Nebula, scientists hope to gain a better understanding of the life cycles of stars and the elements they release into space. Griet van de Steene and Peter van Hof, along with their team of experts in planetary nebulae and related objects, are actively researching and analyzing the Ring Nebula using imaging and spectroscopy techniques.
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