This NASA Hubble Space Telescope image reveals an expanding shell of glowing gas surrounding a hot, massive star in our Milky Way Galaxy. This shell is being shaped by strong stellar winds of material and radiation produced by the bright star at the left, which is 10 to 20 times more massive than our Sun. These fierce winds are sculpting the surrounding material - composed of gas and dust - into the curve-shaped bubble. Astronomers have dubbed it the Bubble Nebula (NGC 7635). The nebula is 10 light-years across, more than twice the distance from Earth to the nearest star. Only part of the bubble is visible in this image. The glowing gas in the lower right-hand corner is a dense region of material that is getting blasted by radiation from the Bubble Nebula's massive star. The radiation is eating into the gas, creating finger-like features. This interaction also heats up the gas, causing it to glow.
Credits
Image
AURA, STScI, NASA, Hubble Heritage Project (STScI, AURA)
| About The Object | |
|---|---|
| Object Name | Bubble Nebula, NGC 7635, Sharpless 162 |
| Object Description | Emission Nebula |
| R.A. Position | 23h 20m 48.3s |
| Dec. Position | 61° 12' 6.0" |
| Constellation | Cassiopeia |
| Distance | 11,300 light-years (3,500 parsecs) |
| Dimensions | The bubble is roughly 10 light-years (3 parsecs) across. The image is approximately 2.6 arcminutes on the vertical. |
| About The Data | |
| Data Description | Principal Astronomers: J. Hester, P. Scowen, and B. Moore (Arizona State University) |
| Instrument | HST>WFPC |
| Exposure Dates | September 6, 1992, Exposure Time: 5 minutes |
| Filters | F502N (OIII), F656N (Halpha), and F658N (NII) |
| About The Image | |
| Color Info | Blue: F502N (OIII) Green: F656N (Halpha) Red: F658N (NII) |
| 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. |
