#hd 44179

[quiltofstars]

The Red Rectangle Nebula, HD 44179 // gmadkat

[the-telescope-times]

Oldie But Goodie  June 7, 2010

The unique Red Rectangle: sharper than ever before

The star HD 44179 is surrounded by an extraordinary structure known as the Red Rectangle. It acquired its moniker because of its shape and its apparent colour when seen in early images from Earth. This strikingly detailed new Hubble image reveals how, when seen from space, the nebula, rather than being rectangular, is shaped like an X with additional complex structures of spaced lines of glowing gas, a little like the rungs of a ladder. The star at the centre is similar to the Sun, but at the end of its lifetime, pumping out gas and other material to make the nebula, and giving it the distinctive shape. It also appears that the star is a close binary that is surrounded by a dense torus of dust — both of which may help to explain the very curious shape. Precisely how the central engine of this remarkable and unique object spun the gossamer threads of nebulosity remains mysterious. It is likely that precessing jets of material played a role.

The Red Rectangle is an unusual example of what is known as a proto-planetary nebula. These are old stars, on their way to becoming planetary nebulae. Once the expulsion of mass is complete a very hot white dwarf star will remain and its brilliant ultraviolet radiation will cause the surrounding gas to glow. The Red Rectangle is found about 2 300 light-years away in the constellation Monoceros (the Unicorn).

The High Resolution Channel of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope’s Advanced Camera for Surveys captured this view of HD 44179 and the surrounding Red Rectangle nebula — the sharpest view so far. Red light from glowing Hydrogen was captured through the F658N filter and coloured red. Orange-red light over a wider range of wavelengths through a F625W filter was coloured blue.

The field of view is about 25 by 20 arcseconds.

Credit:ESA/Hubble and NASA

[chibinotan]

Red Rectangle

[chibinotan]

Wide-Field Red Rectangle

[chibinotan]

Red Rectangle

[astroblogs]

Hubble ziet een unieke rode rechthoek

De ster HD 44179 wordt omgeven door een merkwaardige structuur die de Rode Rechthoek genoemd wordt. Het heeft die naam te danken aan zijn vorm en zijn schijnbare kleur. Bovenstaande Hubble-opname laat zien dat de nevel helemaal geen rechthoek is, maar gevormd is als een letter X met aanvullende complexe structuren, ongeveer zoals de spijlen van een ladder. Het geheel bevindt zich op een afstand van 2300 lichtjaar, in de richting van het sterrenbeeld Monoceros (Eénhoorn).

De ster in het centrum van de nevel is vergelijkbaar met de zon, maar bevindt zich aan het einde van zijn leven. De ster pompt gassen en overig materiaal de ruimte in, waarbij de nevel gevormd wordt. Daarnaast blijkt de ster een begeleider te hebben die omgeven wordt door een stofwolk. Vermoedelijk is die begeleider verantwoordelijk voor de opmerkelijke vorm van de nevel.

De Rode Rechthoek is een voorbeeld van een proto-planetaire nevel. Dit zijn oude sterren die onderweg zijn om een echte planetaire nevel te vormen. Zodra HD 44179 al zijn gaslagen heeft afgestoten, dan zal hij veranderen in een kleine maar hete witte dwergster. De krachtige UV-straling van de ster zal de omringende gaswolk, dan een echte planetaire nevel, tot gloeien brengen.

Bron: Phys.org

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Astroblogs: http://www.astroblogs.nl/2016/04/12/hubble-ziet-een-unieke-rode-rechthoek/

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

The Unearthly Beauty of the Red Rectangle Straight lines do not often crop up in space. Whenever they do, they seem somehow incongruous and draw our attention. The Red Rectangle is one such mystery object. It first caught astronomers’ attention in 1973. The star HD 44179 had been known since 1915 to be double, but it was only when a rocket flight carrying an infrared detector was turned its way that the red rectangle revealed itself. This image was taken later, in 2007, by the Hubble Space Telescope’s Advanced Camera for Surveys. It focuses on wavelengths of red light, in particular highlighting the emission from hydrogen gas. This particular emission has been displayed in red. A second, broader range of orange–red light has also been recorded, and, to increase the contrast, this light has been colour coded blue on the image. The Red Rectangle is some 2300 light-years away in the constellation of Monoceros. It arises because one of the stars in HD 44179 is in the last stages of its life. It has puffed up as the nuclear reactions at its core have faltered, and this has resulted in it shedding its outer layers into space. Such a cloud of gas is known erroneously as a planetary nebula because Hanoverian astronomer William Herschel thought they look a bit like the pale disc of Uranus, the planet he had discovered. The X-shape revealed in this image suggests that something is preventing the uniform expansion of the star’s atmosphere. Instead, a thick disc of dust probably surrounds the star, funnelling the outflow into two wide cones. The edges of these show up as the diagonal lines. Thankfully, while that explains the mystery of the object, it does not detract from its unearthly beauty. Copyright ESA/Hubble and NASA

[pastranec]

The unearthly beauty of the Red Rectangle por European Space Agency Por Flickr: Straight lines do not often crop up in space. Whenever they do, they seem somehow incongruous and draw our attention. The Red Rectangle is one such mystery object. It first caught astronomers’ attention in 1973. The star HD 44179 had been known since 1915 to be double, but it was only when a rocket flight carrying an infrared detector was turned its way that the red rectangle revealed itself. This image was taken later, in 2007, by the Hubble Space Telescope’s Advanced Camera for Surveys. It focuses on wavelengths of red light, in particular highlighting the emission from hydrogen gas. This particular emission has been displayed in red. A second, broader range of orange–red light has also been recorded, and, to increase the contrast, this light has been colour coded blue on the image. The Red Rectangle is some 2300 light-years away in the constellation of Monoceros. It arises because one of the stars in HD 44179 is in the last stages of its life. It has puffed up as the nuclear reactions at its core have faltered, and this has resulted in it shedding its outer layers into space. Such a cloud of gas is known erroneously as a planetary nebula because Hanoverian astronomer William Herschel thought they look a bit like the pale disc of Uranus, the planet he had discovered. The X-shape revealed in this image suggests that something is preventing the uniform expansion of the star’s atmosphere. Instead, a thick disc of dust probably surrounds the star, funnelling the outflow into two wide cones. The edges of these show up as the diagonal lines. Thankfully, while that explains the mystery of the object, it does not detract from its unearthly beauty. This image was first published in June 2010. Credit: ESA/Hubble and NASA