stargazer from theEuropean Southern Observatoryhave taken the best look yet at the Saturn Nebula , and now they are are using the data to interpret how such a arresting structure forge .
The Saturn Nebula , also known as NGC 7009 , is a large planetary nebula 5,000 light - years away . But do n’t let the “ planetal ” adjective confuse you , the nebula has very little to do with major planet and a fortune to do with the get on stars at its center .
The Saturn Nebula shape when a low-toned - spate star expanded into a ruby-red behemoth . This is usually the beginning of the end for stars . The stars swells up and the outer layers start to be blown away by the intense radiation and strong star nothingness come from the Department of the Interior of the star . Over clock time , the hot gas is pushed so far away , a nebula is formed and , at its center , a bright red-hot stellar sum . For NGC 7009 , the stellar marrow is over 55,000 ° C ( 99,000 ° F ) .
The all-encompassing characterization of such an astronomical object is clear , but the details are a lot more complex . To understand the intricate fundamental interaction that shape such an elaborated shape , researchers used the MUSE ( Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer ) instrument on the Very Large Telescope . MUSE provided the chemical and physical data of every pixel in the image .
MUSE allowed the squad to create the first optical single-valued function of the gaseous state and dust distribution . The squad was able to identify an elliptical internal shell , an outer casing , an expand ring , and two streams push through the gasolene and dust of the nebula . These two structures called ansae ( which is Latin for handles ) give the nebula its Saturn - like appearance .
The notice have provided a lot of information , so the investigator now need to work out how all of that fits together . Among the intriguing tidbits , the team find that there is very piddling dust at the internal plate rim . The carapace is an expanding daze wave that is destroying dust in its backwash , but it ’s not clear just how . It could be just smashing into rubble grains and breaking them aside or heating them so much that they simply evaporate forth .
Planetary nebulae only last for a few X of thousands of years – a blink in cosmic terms . More work such as this will be necessary to truly embrace how these objects form .
