NGC 7293: 螺旋星云

2024年10月24日

NGC 7293: The Helix Nebula
Image Credit & Copyright: Patrick Winkler

Explanation: A mere seven hundred light years from Earth toward the constellation Aquarius, a star is dying. The once sun-like star’s last few thousand years have produced the Helix Nebula. Also known as NGC 7293, the cosmic Helix is a well studied and nearby example of a Planetary Nebula, typical of this final phase of stellar evolution. Combining narrow band data from emission lines of hydrogen atoms in red and oxygen atoms in blue-green hues, this deep image shows tantalizing details of the Helix, including its bright inner region about 3 light-years across. The white dot at the Helix’s center is this Planetary Nebula’s hot, dying central star. A simple looking nebula at first glance, the Helix is now understood to have a surprisingly complex geometry.

Tomorrow’s picture: pixels in space

NGC 7293: 螺旋星云
影像提供与版权: Patrick Winkler

说明: 在宝瓶座方向，离我们只有700光年远之处，有一颗类太阳恒星滨临死亡。而它在过去数千年里，产生了螺旋星云 (Helix Nebula; NGC 7293)，这个邻近广被探索、代表这类恒星演化最后阶段的行星状星云。这幅窄波段深空影像，整合原子氢的红光辐射及氧原子的蓝绿光辐射数据，以呈现螺旋星云内围3光年的迷人细微结构。位于螺旋星云中心的白色亮斑，即是这团星云炽热的中心星。乍看之下，螺旋星云的结构看似极简，然而如今我们知道，它其实有出乎意料复杂的几何结构。

明日的图片: pixels in space