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Posted on 04/27/2025 1:23:02 PM PDT by MtnClimber
Explanation: What is creating the strange texture of IC 418? Dubbed the Spirograph Nebula for its resemblance to drawings from a cyclical drawing tool, planetary nebula IC 418 shows patterns that are not well understood. Perhaps they are related to chaotic winds from the variable central star, which changes brightness unpredictably in just a few hours. By contrast, evidence indicates that only a few million years ago, IC 418 was probably a well-understood star similar to our Sun. Only a few thousand years ago, IC 418 was probably a common red giant star. Since running out of nuclear fuel, though, the outer envelope has begun expanding outward leaving a hot remnant core destined to become a white-dwarf star, visible in the image center. The light from the central core excites surrounding atoms in the nebula causing them to glow. IC 418 lies about 2000 light-years away and spans 0.3 light-years across. This false-color image taken from the Hubble Space Telescope reveals the unusual details.
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For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.
🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔
Between the Hubble and Webb, we’re seeing some incredible eye candy these days.
Light years better than when I was a kid.
Cool. Next, I'd like to see the Lite Brite Nebula.
A cheeseburger bun with blueberry jam and a frosted flake in the middle.
And the cheeseburger as the only allowed order at The Olympia Restaurant: Cheeseburger, Chips and Pepsi. Also the only allowed solar allegory.
The Etch-A-Sketch Nebula for me. Heh. :-)
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