Areas that are a deeper teal indicate that the gas and dust are denser - and light is unable to break free.ĭata from Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) were used to make this extremely detailed image. The density of the central region, set off in teal, is reflected by how transparent or opaque it is. These ‘spotlights’ emanate from the bright star and stream through holes in the nebula like sunlight through gaps in a cloud.īut not all of the starlight can escape. Hundreds of straight, brightly-lit lines pierce through the rings of gas and dust. The pair of stars are locked in a tight orbit, which leads the dimmer star to spray ejected material in a range of directions as they orbit one another, resulting in these jagged rings. It has ejected at least eight layers of gas and dust over thousands of years.īut the bright central star visible here has helped ‘stir the pot’, changing the shape of this planetary nebula’s highly intricate rings by creating turbulence. A second star, barely visible at lower left along one of the bright star’s diffraction spikes, is the nebula’s source. The bright star at the centre of NGC 3132, while prominent when viewed by the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Telescope in near-infrared light, plays a supporting role in sculpting the surrounding nebula.
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