Hubble Photographs Dying Nebula 5,000 Light-Years From Earth

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope photographed the glowing remains of a dying, sun-like star after the successful space shuttle mission in December to repair the orbital observatory.

This nebula, about 5,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Gemini, is nicknamed the “Eskimo” Nebula (NGC 2392) because, when viewed through ground-based telescopes, it resembles a face surrounded by a fur parka.

Scientists believe that a ring of dense material around the star’s equator, ejected during its red giant phase, created the nebula’s shape. This dense waist of material is plodding along at 72,000 mph, preventing high-velocity stellar winds from pushing matter along the equator.

The nebula’s glowing gases produce these colors: nitrogen (red), hydrogen (green), oxygen (blue), helium (violet).