Blossoming in nearby galaxy th Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), thisgorgeous nebula is energized by radiation and winds froma massive star whose surface temperature approaches 100,000 degrees Thecomposite color imagefrom the European Southern Observatory' Melipal telescoperesolves details in the energetic nebula, with emissionfrom helium atoms in blue hues, oxygen atoms in green, andhydrogen atoms in red. Whil emission nebulaegenerally show the familiar red light fromionized hydrogen atoms - hydrogen atoms wit theirelectrons stripped away - ionized helium atoms are tracersof even higher energy interactions.The intriguing filaments of helium emission make this and othe recently studied emission nebulae mostexceptional.A Wolf-Rayet star,the massive star powering this nebula,created a cosmic bubblewith stellar winds in the early stagesof its life.Part of the bubble is still apparent as the large arcin the lower portion of the image.The area pictured is about 150 light-years across. Have you seen today's: THEMIS Image of Mars?
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