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    The Strange Structures of the Saturn Nebula/ NGC 7009

    September 28, 2017, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    The spectacular planetary nebula NGC 7009, or the Saturn Nebula, emerges from the darkness like a series of oddly-shaped bubbles, lit up in glorious pinks and blues. This colorful image was captured by the powerful MUSE instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), as part of a study which mapped the dust inside a planetary nebula for the first time. Credit: ESO/J. Walsh

    The spectacular planetary nebula NGC 7009, or the Saturn Nebula, emerges from the darkness like a series of oddly-shaped bubbles, lit up in glorious pinks and blues. This colorful image was captured by the powerful MUSE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), as part of a study which mapped the dust inside a planetary nebula for the first time. Credit: ESO/J. Walsh

    The spectacular planetary nebula NGC 7009 is ~5000 light years away in the constellation of Aquarius (The Water Bearer). Its name derives from its odd shape, which resembles everyone’s favourite ringed planet seen edge-on. But in fact, planetary nebulae have nothing to do with planets...

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