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Credit & Copyright: Taavi Niittee
(Tцrva Astronomy Club)
Explanation:
What created the unusual halo around the Cat's Eye Nebula?
No one is sure.
What is sure is that
the Cat's Eye Nebula
(NGC 6543) is one of the best known
planetary nebulae on the sky.
Although haunting symmetries are seen
in the bright central region,
this image was taken to feature its
intricately structured outer halo, which spans over three
light-years across.
Planetary
nebulae have long been appreciated as a final phase
in the life
of a Sun-like star.
Only recently however, have some planetaries been
found to have expansive halos,
likely formed from material shrugged off during earlier
puzzling episodes in the
star's evolution.
While the planetary nebula phase is
thought to last for around 10,000 years,
astronomers estimate the age of the
outer filamentary portions of the
Cat's Eye Nebula's halo to be 50,000 to 90,000 years.
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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: Cat's Eye Nebula - NGC 6543
Publications with words: Cat's Eye Nebula - NGC 6543
See also: