Astronomy Picture of the Day -- The Bubble Nebula

NASA ^ | December 14, 2013 | (see photo credit)

[SunkenCiv]

Explanation: Blown by the wind from a massive star, this interstellar apparition has a surprisingly familiar shape. Cataloged as NGC 7635, it is also known simply as The Bubble Nebula. Although it looks delicate, the 10 light-year diameter bubble offers evidence of violent processes at work. Above and right of the Bubble's center is a hot, O star, several hundred thousand times more luminous and around 45 times more massive than the Sun. A fierce stellar wind and intense radiation from that star has blasted out the structure of glowing gas against denser material in a surrounding molecular cloud. The intriguing Bubble Nebula lies a mere 11,000 light-years away toward the boastful constellation Cassiopeia. This natural looking view of the cosmic bubble is composed from narrowband image data, also used to create a 3D model.

[SunkenCiv]

[Credit & Copyright: J-P Metsävainio (Astro Anarchy)]

[SunkenCiv]

The Big One

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[Red_Devil 232]

Very cool!

[cripplecreek]

Gallifrey falls no more.

[SunkenCiv]

http://www.geekosystem.com/gallifrey-change-org-petition/

[SunkenCiv]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmUnqrZI4qE

[cripplecreek]

Sure beats names like nu Oph C.

[NYer]

Gorgeous ... and fascinating.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Imagine what fun it must have been to be the first astronomer to spot it. "Wait until you see what I've found!"

And what a coincidence that this astronomer's last name just happened to be "Bubble," so that when the nebula was named after its discoverer it fit so well. Amazing but true!