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Zoom to the Little Dumbbell Nebula

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      A zoom into the constellation Perseus reveals the Hubble Space Telescope's view of the Little Dumbbell Nebula. Also known as Messier 76, M76, or NGC 650/651, it is composed of a ring, seen edge-on as the central bar structure, and two lobes on either opening of the ring. The two mottled lobes of colorful glowing gases resemble a balloon that has been pinched in the middle. Both lobes are expanding into space from a dying star, which is the white dot in the center. Blistering ultraviolet radiation from the super-hot star is causing the gases to glow. The red color is from nitrogen and blue from oxygen. Astronomers took this image of M76 in celebration of the 34th anniversary of Hubble's launch on April 24, 1990.

      • Release Date
        April 23, 2024
      • Science Release
        Hubble Celebrates 34th Anniversary with a Look at the Little Dumbbell Nebula
        Read the release
      • Credit
        NASA, ESA, STScI, Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

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      Taking up most of the image, is a multi-colored nebula appearing as two translucent orbs attached by a white band.

      Little Dumbbell Nebula (WFC3 Image)

      In celebration of the 34th anniversary of the launch of NASA’s legendary Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers took a snapshot of the Little Dumbbell Nebula, also known as Messier 76, or M76, located 3,400 light-years away in the northern circumpolar constellation Perseus. The...

      Annotated image labeled “Little Dumbbell Nebula, M76, HST WFC3/UVIS” against the black background of space. Near top left, a color key consisting of five lines reads: “F475W SDSS g’” in cyan; “F502N OIII” in dark blue; “F656N Ha” in green; “F658N NIII” in red; and “F814W I” in orange. The nebula is located 3,400 light-years away in the northern circumpolar constellation Perseus. The name 'Little Dumbbell' comes from its shape that is a two-lobed structure of colorful, mottled, glowing gases resembling a balloon that’s been pinched around a middle waist. Like an inflating balloon, the lobes are expanding into space from a dying star seen as a white dot in the center. Blistering ultraviolet radiation from the super-hot star is causing the gases to glow. The red color is from nitrogen, and blue is from oxygen. At bottom left corner is a scale bar labeled “1 light-year.” At bottom right corner, the “E” compass arrow points towards the 10 o’clock position. The “N” arrow points towards the 1 o’clock position.

      Little Dumbbell Nebula (WFC3 Compass Image)

      This is an annotated Hubble Space Telescope image of the Little Dumbbell Nebula, located 3,400 light-years away in the northern circumpolar constellation Perseus. The object’s name comes from its shape that is a two-lobed structure of colorful, mottled, glowing gases resembling...

      M76_1280x720 - Taking up most of the image, is a multi-colored nebula appearing as two translucent orbs attached by a white band.

      A Tour of Messier 76

      In celebration of the 34th anniversary of the launch of NASA's legendary Hubble Space Telescope on April 24, 1990, astronomers took a snapshot of the Little Dumbbell Nebula. Also known as Messier 76, M76, or NGC 650/651, it is composed of a ring, seen edge-on as the central bar...

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      Last Updated
      Mar 28, 2025
      Contact
      Media

      Claire Andreoli
      NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
      Greenbelt, Maryland
      claire.andreoli@nasa.gov

      Acknowledgment Credit

      DSS, Dan Crowson, Akira Fujii

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