The Cats Eye Nebula
Explanation:
Three thousand light-years away,
a dying star throws off shells of glowing gas.
This image from the
Hubble Space Telescope reveals the
Cat's Eye Nebula to be one of the most
complex
planetary nebulae known.
In fact, the features seen in the
Cat's Eye
are so complex that astronomers suspect the bright
central object may actually be a
binary star system.
The term
planetary
nebula, used to describe this
general class of objects, is misleading.
Although these objects may appear round and
planet-like in small telescopes,
high resolution images reveal them to be stars
surrounded by cocoons of gas blown off in the
late
stages of stellar evolution.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
