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Stars’ Orbits in Wolf-Rayet 140 (Visualization)

When the two massive stars in Wolf-Rayet 140 swing past one another, their winds collide, material compresses, and carbon-rich dust forms. The stronger winds of the hotter Wolf-Rayet star blow behind its slightly cooler (but still hot) companion. The stars create dust for several months in every eight-year orbit.

  • Release Date
    January 13, 2025
  • Science Release
    Webb Watches Carbon-Rich Dust Shells Form, Expand in Star System
    Read the release
  • Credit
    Animation: NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)

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Related Images & Videos

A three-part graphic showing observations of Wolf-Rayet 140, two massive stars with 17 dust shells around them. An inset appears at right, showing a portion of the two observations matched up to show that the arced dust has moved.

Compare Observations of Wolf-Rayet 140 (MIRI Images)

Watch dust move in space! Compare the two mid-infrared images taken by the James Webb Space Telescope of Wolf-Rayet 140, a system of dust shells ejected by two massive stars that are in an elongated orbit. Look to the top right of the first two images. Two triangles are matched...

A graphic labeled “James Webb Space Telescope; Wolf-Rayet 140.” A bright white point of light is surrounded by seventeen regularly spaced, hazy dust shells at its bottom, right, and upper right that are set against the black background of space.

Wolf-Rayet 140 (MIRI Compass Image)

This 2023 image of Wolf-Rayet 140, a system of dust shells ejected by two massive stars at the center, was captured by the James Webb Space Telescope’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument). The image shows a scale bar, compass arrows, and color key for reference. The scale bar is...

Wolf-Rayet 140 observed in 2022. A bright white point of light is surrounded by 17 regularly spaced, hazy dust shells at the bottom, right, and upper right, which look like tree rings. There is noticeably less color in the upper left. The central point, where the two stars are located, has a rough hexagon shape. There are several blue diffraction spikes. This area is toward the top right, where the outer rings appear bright orange.

Fade Between 2022 and 2023 Observations of Wolf-Rayet 140

This video alternates between two James Webb Space Telescope observations of Wolf-Rayet 140, a two-star system that has sent out more than 17 shells of dust over 130 years. Mid-infrared light observations highlight them with excellent clarity. By comparing this pair of...

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Details

Last Updated
Nov 17, 2025
Contact
Media

Laura Betz
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
laura.e.betz@nasa.gov

Animation Credit

NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)

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