NGC 6888: The Crescent Nebula
Explanation:
NGC 6888, also known as the Crescent Nebula, is a
about 25 light-years across
blown
by winds
from its central, bright, massive star.
A triumvirate of astroimagers
( Joe,
Glenn,
Russell)
created this sharp portrait
of the cosmic bubble.
Their telescopic collaboration
collected over 30 hours of narrow band image data isolating light from hydrogen
and oxygen
atoms.
The oxygen atoms produce the blue-green hue that seems to enshroud
the detailed folds and filaments.
Visible within the nebula, NGC 6888's central star is classified as a
Wolf-Rayet
star (WR 136).
The star is shedding its outer envelope in a strong
stellar wind,
ejecting the equivalent of the Sun's mass every 10,000 years.
The nebula's complex structures are likely the result of this
strong wind interacting with material ejected in an earlier phase.
Burning fuel at a prodigious rate and
near the end
of its stellar life this star should ultimately go out
with a bang in a spectacular
supernova
explosion.
Found in the
nebula rich constellation Cygnus,
NGC 6888
is about 5,000 light-years away.
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.
