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Credit & Copyright: NASA,
ESA,
Hubble;
Processing:
H. Bond
(STScI),
R. Ciardullo
(PSU),
Forrest Hamilton (STScI)
Explanation:
What's that in the center?
Like a
butterfly, a
white dwarf star begins its life by casting off a
cocoon
of gas that enclosed its former self.
In this analogy, however, the
Sun would be a
caterpillar and the ejected shell of gas would become the
prettiest cocoon of all.
In the featured cocoon, the
planetary nebula designated
NGC 2440 contains one of the
hottest white dwarf stars known.
The white dwarf
can be seen as the bright orange dot near the image center.
Our Sun
will eventually become a
white dwarf
butterfly, but not for
another 5 billion years.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: NGC 2440 - white dwarf - planetary nebula
Publications with words: NGC 2440 - white dwarf - planetary nebula
See also: