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Hubble Captures a Ring
This close-up, visible-light view by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope reveals new details of the Ring Nebula.
The object is tilted toward Earth so that astronomers see the ring face-on. The Hubble observations reveal that the nebula's shape is more complicated than astronomers thought. The blue gas in the nebula's center is actually a football-shaped structure that pierces the red doughnut-shaped material. Hubble also uncovers the detailed structure of the dark, irregular knots of dense gas embedded along the inner rim of the ring. The knots look like spokes in a bicycle. The Hubble images have allowed the research team to match up the knots with the spikes of light around the bright, main ring, which are a shadow effect.
The Ring Nebula is a well-known planetary nebula, the glowing remains of a Sun-like star. The tiny white dot in the center of the nebula is the star's hot core, called a white dwarf.
The nebula is about 2,000 light-years away in the constellation Lyra. The structure measures roughly one light-year across.
The Hubble observations were taken Sept. 19, 2011, by the Wide Field Camera 3. In the image, the deep blue color in the center represents helium; the cyan color of the inner ring is the glow of hydrogen and oxygen; and the reddish color of the outer ring is from nitrogen and sulfur.
About the Object
- R.A. PositionR.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.18h 53m 35.07s
- Dec. PositionDec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.33° 1' 45.03"
- ConstellationConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.Lyra
- DistanceDistanceThe 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.2,300 light-years (700 parsecs)
About the Data
- Data DescriptionData DescriptionProposal: A description of the observations, their scientific justification, and the links to the data available in the science archive.
Science Team: The astronomers who planned the observations and analyzed the data. "PI" refers to the Principal Investigator.The image was created from Hubble data from proposal 12309: C. R. O'Dell (Vanderbilt University), G. Ferland (University of Kentucky), and W. Henney and M. Peimbert (UNAM). - InstrumentInstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.HST>WFC3/UVIS
- Exposure DatesExposure DatesThe date(s) that the telescope made its observations and the total exposure time.September 19, 2011
- FiltersFiltersThe camera filters that were used in the science observations.F469N (He II), F487N (H-beta), F502N ([O III]), F645N (continuum), F656N (H-alpha), F658N ([N II]), and F673N ([S II])
- Object NameObject NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.Ring Nebula, M57, NGC 6720
- Object DescriptionObject DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.Planetary Nebula
- Release DateMay 23, 2013
- Science ReleaseNASA’s Hubble Space Telescope Reveals the Ring Nebula’s True Shape
- Credit
Blue: F469N (He II) + F487N (H-beta) Blue/green: F502N ([O III]) Green: F645N (continuum) Green/yellow: F656N (H-alpha) Red: F658N ([N II]) Orange: F673N ([S II])
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Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov
