Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                 2023 July 9
   [2]A Hubble image of the gas and dust surrounding the star Eta Carinae
    is shown. The nebula has two distinct light-colored lobes, surrounded
      by red glowing gas. Please see the explanation for more detailed
                                information.

                           Doomed Star Eta Carinae
     Image Credit & Copyright: [3]NASA, [4]ESA, [5]Hubble; Processing &
                         [6]License: [7]Judy Schmidt

   Explanation: Eta Carinae may be about to explode. But no one knows when
   - it may be next year, it may be one million years from now. [8]Eta
   Carinae's mass - about 100 times greater than our [9]Sun - makes it an
   excellent candidate for a full blown [10]supernova. Historical records
   do show that about 170 years ago [11]Eta Carinae underwent an unusual
   outburst that made it one of the [12]brightest stars in the
   [13]southern sky. [14]Eta Carinae, in the [15]Keyhole Nebula, is the
   only [16]star currently [17]thought to emit natural LASER light. This
   [18]featured image brings out details in the [19]unusual nebula that
   surrounds [20]this rogue star. [21]Diffraction spikes, caused by the
   telescope, are visible as bright multi-colored streaks emanating from
   Eta Carinae's center. Two distinct lobes of the [22]Homunculus Nebula
   encompass the [23]hot central region, while some strange radial streaks
   are visible in red extending toward the image right. The lobes are
   [24]filled with lanes of gas and [25]dust which absorb the blue and
   [26]ultraviolet light emitted near the center. The streaks, however,
   remain [27]unexplained.

                   Tomorrow's picture: stellar pandemonium
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    Authors & editors: [39]Robert Nemiroff ([40]MTU) & [41]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([42]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Phillip Newman [43]Specific rights apply.
              [44]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                A service of: [45]ASD at [46]NASA / [47]GSFC,
                         [48]NASA Science Activation
                           & [49]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2307/EtaCarinae_HubbleSchmidt_1764.jpg
   3. https://www.nasa.gov/
   4. http://www.esa.int/
   5. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/main/index.html
   6. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
   7. https://geckzilla.com/
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap991011.html
   9. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/sun.html
  10. https://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/science/objects/supernovae2.html
  11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eta_Carinae
  12. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_brightest_stars#Table
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap000618.html
  14. http://messier.seds.org/xtra/ngc/etacar.html
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap160814.html
  16. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaBxMo4b74g
  17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap971129.html
  18. https://www.flickr.com/photos/geckzilla/32019832757/
  19. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpnhCEqcRvY
  20. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1997ARA&A..35....1D/abstract
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap010415.html
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap140717.html
  23. https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1995ApJ...445L.121C/abstract
  24. https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7184
  25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap030706.html
  26. https://science.nasa.gov/ems/10_ultravioletwaves
  27. http://en.bcdn.biz/Images/2016/6/22/2617d6e7-4f6a-4c46-9020-c3aee00f3c79.jpg
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230708.html
  29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  31. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  32. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  33. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  34. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss
  35. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  36. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  37. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=230709
  38. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230710.html
  39. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  40. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  41. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  42. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  43. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  44. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  45. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  46. https://www.nasa.gov/
  47. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  48. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  49. http://www.mtu.edu/