Celestial hemisphere:  Southern  ·  Constellation: Scorpius (Sco)  ·  Contains:  Bug nebula  ·  NGC 6302  ·  PK349+01.1  ·  Sh2-6
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NGC 6302 A Bipolar Planetary Nebula, Alex Woronow
NGC 6302 A Bipolar Planetary Nebula, Alex Woronow

NGC 6302 A Bipolar Planetary Nebula

Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
NGC 6302 A Bipolar Planetary Nebula, Alex Woronow
NGC 6302 A Bipolar Planetary Nebula, Alex Woronow

NGC 6302 A Bipolar Planetary Nebula

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Description

NGC 6302 A Bipolar Planetary Nebula

OTA:……………….PlaneWave 17” f/6.8
Camera:………….FLI ML16803
Observatory:…. Deep Sky West, Chile

EXPOSURES:               
…R…….10 x 900 sec.                                       
…G…….17 x 600
…B…....16 x 600               
…L……..18 x 600
…H.…….9 x 1800                               
Total exposure 11.7 hours

Length of NGC 6302: 4 arc-minutes
Processed by Alex Woronow (2022) using PixInsight, Topaz, 3DLut, SWT

Extraterrestial bipolarism is not all that common, as far as we know. Thus this planetary nebula, not surprisingly perhaps, is more complex than most and has the hottest star of any planetary nebula at its center. The star apparently had a thick encircling belt (a “dusty torus” in Wikipedia talk) in orbit around it, which helped fashion the bidirectionality of the explosion. That belt has a remarkable composition: crystalline silicates (including quartz) and water ice. The formative event appears to be relatively young at about 1900 years!

Wikipedia


Hope you find the image pleasing, if not provocative!
Alex

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NGC 6302 A Bipolar Planetary Nebula, Alex Woronow