This image of the planetary nebula SuWt 2 reveals a bright ring-like structure encircling a bright central star. The central star is actually a close binary system where two stars completely circle each other every five days. The interaction of these stars and the more massive star that sheds material to create the nebula formed the ring structure. The burned out core of the massive companion has yet to be found inside the nebula. The nebula is located 6,500 light-years from Earth in the direction of the constellation Centaurus. This color image was taken on Jan. 31, 1995 with the National Optical Astronomy Observatory's 1.5-meter telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile.
Credits
NASA, NOAO, H. Bond and K. Exter (STScI/AURA)| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | SuWt 2 |
| Object Description | Planetary Nebula |
| R.A. Position | 13h 55m 43.23s |
| Dec. Position | -59° 22' 40.03" |
| Constellation | Centaurus |
| Distance | 6,500 light-years or 2,000 parsecs |
| Dimensions | The image is approximately 9 arcminutes (17 light-years or 5 parsecs) wide. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | The science team comprises K. Exter and H. Bond (STScI), K. Stassun (Vanderbilt University, Tenn.), P. Maxted and B. Smalley (Keele University, UK), and D. Pollacco (Queen’s University, UK). |
| Instrument | CTIO>NOAO/1.5m |
| Exposure Dates | January 31, 1995 |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | The image is a composite of separate exposures made by the CTIO 1.5m data. Two filters were used to sample narrow wavelength ranges matching the emission of specific chemical elements. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic image. In this case, the assigned colors are: Red: Hα Green: Hα+[O III] Blue: [O III] |
| Compass Image |  |
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | A name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object. |
| Object Description | The type of astronomical object. |
| R.A. Position | Right ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Dec. Position | Declination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position. |
| Constellation | One of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears. |
| Distance | The physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs. |
| Dimensions | The physical size of the object or the apparent angle it subtends on the sky. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description |
|
| Instrument | The science instrument used to produce the data. |
| Exposure Dates | The date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time. |
| Filters | The camera filters that were used in the science observations. |
| About The Image | |
| Image Credit | The primary individuals and institutions responsible for the content. |
| Publication Date | The date and time the release content became public. |
| Color Info | A brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented. |
| Orientation | The rotation of the image on the sky with respect to the north pole of the celestial sphere. |
