NGC 3132 Southern Ring Nebula, JWST

Southern Ring Nebula, JWST, NGC  3132

The southern ring nebula NGC 3132 is a planetary nebula located in the southern constellation Vela some 40 degrees south of the celestial equator and 2500 light years distant. Planetary nebulas are created by stars of the size of our Sun as they die and cast off material.  Webb’s infrared images allow new details in this complex system to be explored.    This image was captured in six infrared wavelengths using the near infrared camera(NIRCAM)  The  bright stars in the center of the image is not the dying star but is locked in a tight orbit circling the dying star not visible in this image. The dying star is hidden by dust but can be seen in the accompanying JWST image that was taken with the mid infrared camera(MIRI).https://earthandskyimaging.com/product/ngc-3132-southern-ring-nebula-jwstmiri/  The deeper infrared filters in the MIRI camera allow it to see through the dust to reveal the dying star. Each shell represents an episode where the fainter star lost some of its mass. The widest shells of gas toward the outer areas of the image were ejected earlier. Those closest to the star are the most recent. Tracing these ejections allows researchers to look into the history of the system. Observations taken with NIRCam also reveal extremely fine rays of light around the planetary nebula. Starlight from the central stars streams out where there are holes in the gas and dust – like sunlight through gaps in a cloud. Since planetary nebulae exist for tens of thousands of years, observing the nebula is like watching a movie in exceptionally slow motion. Each shell the star puffed off gives researchers the ability to precisely measure the gas and dust that are present within it. Eventually all of the material from the star will be ejected into interstellar space and over billions of years may form another star. In the meantime, the brighter star influences the nebula’s appearance. As the pair continues to orbit one another, they “stir the pot” of gas and dust, causing asymmetrical patterns.

This image was made by Michael Adler using the data from the Webb telescope. The data consisted of B&W images taken through six filters ranging from 4700nm to 900nm. Wide bandwidth filters at 4400nm, 3560nm, and 900nm form the basis of the image  with their images assigned to red, green, and blue light, respectably, in the image.  Images from narrowband filters at wavelengths of 4700nm, 2020nm, and 1870nm were also assigned the same colors and provide higher resolution detail in the image. This image has considerably more detail than an older image done by the Hubble telescope. https://hubblesite.org/contents/media/images/1998/39/729-Image.htm  

This image can be compared with the northern ring nebula done by Michael Adler at his observatory in Jackson WY. https://earthandskyimaging.com/product/ring-nebula-messier-57-narrowband/  One can see a similar set of distinct layers of material that ere ejected.