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Apep Star System (VLT)

Two bright, blue-white stars appear at center, with the smaller one near 1 o’clock. They are surrounded by an orange haze that spirals and takes on undulating shapes.

Evidence indicates that large amounts of cosmic dust are produced as the stellar winds of massive stars collide in Wolf-Rayet binary or multiple-star systems. As the stars orbit each other and dust is produced, a distinctive pinwheel pattern is formed, as shown in this image from the European Southern Observatory. Warm dust like this glows in the mid-infrared wavelengths of light detectable by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. Confirming the origin of dust will help account for the mysterious over-abundance of it found in galaxies, which is crucial to the later development of stars, planets, and life as we know it.

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    16:00:50.48
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    -51:42:44.94
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Norma

About the Data

  • Instrument
    InstrumentThe science instrument used to produce the data.
    NACO and VISIR
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    Apep
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Triple Star System
  • Release Date
    November 18, 2020
  • Science Release
    The Cosmic Dust in Your Bones—NASA’s Webb Telescope Will Investigate the Intertwined Origins of Dust and Life
    Read the release
  • Credit
    Image: ESO, Joseph Callingham (ESO)

Downloads

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Two bright, blue-white stars appear at center, with the smaller one near 1 o’clock. They are surrounded by an orange haze that spirals and takes on undulating shapes.
Color Info
Color InfoA brief description of the methods used to convert telescope data into the color image being presented.

These images are a composite of separate exposures acquired by ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT). Several filters were used to sample specific 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: 2240nm Orange: 8900nm

Related Images & Videos

Two stars on overlapping orbits

WR 140 Binary System: Perspective View

This animation shows the production of dust in the binary star system WR 140 as the orbit of the Wolf-Rayet star approaches the O-type star and their stellar winds collide. The stronger winds of the Wolf-Rayet star blow back behind the O star, and dust is created in its wake as...

Two stars on overlapping orbits

WR 140 Binary System: Top View

This animation looks down from above the orbital plane to depict the spiraling creation of dust in the binary star system WR 140. A Wolf-Rayet star — the dense core of an aging massive star — and an O-type star orbit one another, their stellar winds colliding as they get close....

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Details

Last Updated
Aug 28, 2025
Contact
Media

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

Image Credit

ESO, Joseph Callingham (ESO)

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