#1
#1 out of 1
1d ago
Dying star resembles a billowing crystal ball in new telescope photo
- Astronomers captured a dying binary star system in a vivid color image from Gemini North, revealing the Crystal Ball Nebula around NGC 1514.
- NGC 1514’s glowing cloud forms as the star sheds outer layers late in its life, heating the gas to tens of thousands of degrees.
- NOIRLab operates Gemini North, which last year observed the nebula before a color processing update last week.
- The Crystal Ball Nebula is about 1,500 light-years away from Earth.
- The nebula’s glow results from heating of the gas to tens of thousands of degrees by the exposed core.
- The report notes the star system once contained stars larger than the sun and is near the end of its life.
- The NOIRLab operates the Gemini North Telescope that produced the new image.
- Researchers say the color image was completed recently, providing a fresh view of the nebula.
- The story is reported by Marcia Dunn of the Associated Press for the Los Angeles Times.
- The article mentions related science and environment items in the Times' latest sections.
Vote 0