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Nebula NGC 6751 is a planetary nebula located some 6500 light years away toward the constellation Aquila. The nebula consists of a cloud of gas that was thrown off from a hot central star (which is visible at the very center of the image) several thousand years ago. Ultraviolet light from the hot central star causes the ejected gas to glow by a process known as "fluorescence." In this image, blue represents the hottest gas and orange and red represents the coolest gas. The surface temperature of the hot central star is around 250,000 degrees F (140,000 degrees C).
Image and text copyright © Astrographics. All rights reserved. Image courtesy of Space Telescope Science Institute. |
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