APOD: 2023 July 17 Б Shells and Arcs around Star CW Leonis
Explanation:
What's happening around this star?
No one is sure.
CW Leonis is the closest
carbon star, a star that appears orange because of
atmospheric carbon dispersed from
interior nuclear fusion.
But CW Leonis
also appears engulfed in a gaseous carbon-rich nebula.
What causes the nebula's
complexity is unknown, but its geometry of
shells and arcs are surely
intriguing.
The featured image by the
Hubble Space Telescope details this complexity.
The low surface gravity of carbon
stars
enhances their ability to expel
carbon and carbon compounds into
space.
Some of this carbon ends up forming
dark
dust
that is commonly seen in the nebulas of
young star-forming regions and the
disks of galaxies.
Humans and all Earth-based
life are carbon-based, and at least some of
our carbon was likely once
circulating in the atmospheres of near-death stars like
carbon stars.
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.
