Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2020 September 13

                      M2-9: Wings of a Butterfly Nebula
      Image Credit: Hubble Legacy Archive, NASA, ESA - Processing: Judy
                                   Schmidt

   Explanation: Are stars better appreciated for their art after they die?
   Actually, stars usually create their most artistic displays as they
   die. In the case of low-mass stars like our Sun and M2-9 pictured here,
   the stars transform themselves from normal stars to white dwarfs by
   casting off their outer gaseous envelopes. The expended gas frequently
   forms an impressive display called a planetary nebula that fades
   gradually over thousands of years. M2-9, a butterfly planetary nebula
   2100 light-years away shown in representative colors, has wings that
   tell a strange but incomplete tale. In the center, two stars orbit
   inside a gaseous disk 10 times the orbit of Pluto. The expelled
   envelope of the dying star breaks out from the disk creating the
   bipolar appearance. Much remains unknown about the physical processes
   that cause and shape planetary nebulae.

                  Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator
                     Tomorrow's picture: corny moonrise
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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