This image shows the planetary nebula Hen 3-1357, nicknamed the Stingray nebula, captured by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope in January 2016. This image of the Stingray nebula shows it has changed drastically in brightness and shape when compared to its first portrait by Hubble in 1996. When comparing the imaging, researchers discovered unprecedented changes in the light emitted by glowing nitrogen (shown in red), hydrogen (blue) and oxygen (green) being blasted off by the dying star at the center of the nebula.
Credits
NASA, ESA, B. Balick (University of Washington), M. Guerrero (Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía), and G. Ramos-Larios (Universidad de Guadalajara)| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | Hen 3-1357 (Stingray Nebula) |
| Object Description | Planetary Nebula |
| R.A. Position | 17:16:21.07 |
| Dec. Position | -59:29:23.64 |
| Constellation | Ara |
| Distance | 18,260 light-years |
| Dimensions | Image is about 6 arcsec across (about 0.5 light-years) |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | The HST observations include those from programs (M. Bobrowsky) and (Z. Edwards) |
| Instrument | WFC3/UVIS |
| Exposure Dates | 22 January 2016 |
| Filters | F502N, F656N, F658N |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | These images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by the WFPC2 and WFC3/UVIS instruments on the Hubble Space Telescope. Several filters were used to sample narrow wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic (grayscale) image associated with an individual filter. In this case, the assigned colors are: Blue: F502N Green: F656N Red: F658N |
| 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. |
