                        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.

                                 2023 May 30
    An expansive interstellar gas cloud is shown with an orange interior
        and outer blue filaments. Many stars are visible in the dark
    background. Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

                          M27: The Dumbbell Nebula
                Image Credit & Copyright: Patrick A. Cosgrove

   Explanation: Is this what will become of our Sun? Quite possibly. The
   first hint of our Sun's future was discovered inadvertently in 1764. At
   that time, Charles Messier was compiling a list of diffuse objects not
   to be confused with comets. The 27th object on Messier's list, now
   known as M27 or the Dumbbell Nebula, is a planetary nebula, one of the
   brightest planetary nebulae on the sky and visible with binoculars
   toward the constellation of the Fox (Vulpecula). It takes light about
   1000 years to reach us from M27, featured here in colors emitted by
   sulfur (red), hydrogen (green) and oxygen (blue). We now know that in
   about 6 billion years, our Sun will shed its outer gases into a
   planetary nebula like M27, while its remaining center will become an
   X-ray hot white dwarf star. Understanding the physics and significance
   of M27 was well beyond 18th century science, though. Even today, many
   things remain mysterious about planetary nebulas, including how their
   intricate shapes are created.

                   Tomorrow's picture: watch a galaxy form
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
                NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

