Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Aquila (Aql)  ·  Contains:  HD176651  ·  LBN 103  ·  PK036-01.1  ·  Sh2-71
Sh2-71, Eddie Bagwell
Sh2-71, Eddie Bagwell

Sh2-71

Sh2-71, Eddie Bagwell
Sh2-71, Eddie Bagwell

Sh2-71

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Description

Sh2-71 is the 71st object in a catalogue of nebulae originally assembled by the U.S. astronomer Stewart Sharpless of the US Naval Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. Astronomers long assumed that Sh2-71 formed from the death throes of the brightest star (a binary system) which lies very close to the center of the nebula’s gas shell. But new observations have shown that the nature of a dimmer, bluer star that is located just to the right, and a bit lower than the bright central star, might provide a better fit for the nebula’s “birth parent.”

The nebula presents a Multi-polar Structure and several pairs of Bipolar lobes at different orientations that formed at different times and likely involved a binary progenitor. The chaotic morphology of Sh2-71 implies that very complex processes have been involved in its formation. Often planetary nebulae appear quite symmetrical, but when multiple stars are involved, their structure looks much more complex. In such cases, astronomers believe that the transfer of gas from one star to another results in explosions and eruptions that disrupt the symmetry of the nebula.

Captured in Ha and O3 and processed in the HOO palette.

Thanks, Eddie

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