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                           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 25   
      
                              Cat's Eye Wide and Deep   
           Image Credit & Copyright: Jean-Fran+ºois Bax, Guillaume Gruntz   
      
      Explanation: The Cat's Eye Nebula (NGC 6543) is one of the best known   
      planetary nebulae in the sky. Its more familiar outlines are seen in   
      the brighter central region of the nebula in this impressive wide-angle   
      view. But this wide and deep image combining data from two telescopes   
      also reveals its extremely faint outer halo. At an estimated distance   
      of 3,000 light-years, the faint outer halo is over 5 light-years   
      across. Planetary nebulae have long been appreciated as a final phase   
      in the life of a sun-like star. More recently, some planetary nebulae   
      are found to have halos like this one, likely formed of material   
      shrugged off during earlier episodes in the star's evolution. While the   
      planetary nebula phase is thought to last for around 10,000 years,   
      astronomers estimate the age of the outer filamentary portions of this   
      halo to be 50,000 to 90,000 years. Visible on the right, some 50   
      million light-years beyond the watchful planetary nebula, lies spiral   
      galaxy NGC 6552.   
      
                    Tomorrow's picture: Virgo Cluster Galaxies   
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          Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)   
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