astronomers at the European southern Observatory (ESO) using the telescope Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile photographed a symmetric gas nebula NGC 2899, which is in its play of colors and complex structure resembles a fluttering in the night sky multi-colored butterfly.
the image was published on the official website of ESO. This object is located at a distance of from 3000 to 6500 light-years from Earth in the southern constellation Vela. It has two Central stars. Astronomers believe that it is because of this gas nebula has a symmetrical shape.
a Butterfly it reminds, too, not just. One of the Central stars have now reached the end of its evolution and threw into space their outer shell. These flows of gas now interacts with the second star. In the photo it looks like the wings of a butterfly. By the way, a similar structure have only 10-20 per cent of planetary nebulae.
“Extensive gas shell NGC 2899 shattered from its centre to a distance of two light years, – it is spoken in the message of the ESO. Gas in it is heated to a temperature of about 10 thousand degrees, and the nebula glows brightly against the background stars of the milky Way. High temperature gas due to the powerful radiation of the parent star that produced this nebula”.
it is Reported that the gas shell is composed mainly of hydrogen. Its layers emit a red glow, a more rare oxygen layers that glow blue. Together this creates a very mesmerizing lighting effect.
In the release to the picture noted that never before have astronomers not been able to photograph this planetary nebula such details. Appear on the image even its weak outer edges, Shine through the background star field.
to Achieve this was to use FORS receiver, which is mounted on one of the four main 8.2-metre telescopes of the VLT complex. This tool has a very high resolution. Its name stands for “focal reducer and low dispersion spectrograph” (FOcal Reducer and low dispersion Spectrograph).
