This planetary nebula, named the Red Spider for its long weaving red web of filaments and gases, formed this unique structure because it began as a normal star which ejected its outer gases to become a white dwarf. In fact, it contains one of the hottest white dwarfs ever observed. Our own sun will actually one day become a white dwarf star like this, but not for 5 billion years. It is estimated to be about 4,000 lightyears away. Winds in the central stars move around 1000 kilometers a second, expanding the nebula and causing the gas and dust to collide, making atoms caught in the collisions radiate light.
No comments:
Post a Comment