Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                 2025 June 6
    [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest
                        resolution version available.

                       NGC 6302: The Butterfly Nebula
                 Image Credit & [3]Copyright: [4]Mike Selby

   Explanation: The bright clusters and nebulae of planet Earth's night
   sky are often given the names of [5]flowers or [6]insects, and its
   whopping 3 light-year wingspan, [7]NGC 6302 is no exception. With an
   estimated surface temperature of about 250,000 degrees [8]C, the
   central star of the [9]planetary nebula is transforming into a white
   dwarf star, becoming exceptionally hot, and shining brightly in
   ultraviolet light. The central star is hidden from direct view by a
   torus of dust, but its energetic ultraviolet light ionizes atoms in the
   nebula. [10]In this sharp, telescopic view composed with narrowband
   image data, the ionized hydrogen and doubly ionized oxygen atoms are
   shown in their characteristic red and blue-green hues to reveal a
   stunning complex of [11]knots and filaments within the nebula's
   wing-like bipolar outflows. [12]NGC 6302 lies about 4,000 light-years
   away in the arachnologically correct constellation of the Scorpion
   ([13]Scorpius).

               Tomorrow's picture: perseverance with ingenuity
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    Authors & editors: [25]Robert Nemiroff ([26]MTU) & [27]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([28]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [29]Specific rights apply.
              [30]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                A service of: [31]ASD at [32]NASA / [33]GSFC,
                         [34]NASA Science Activation
                           & [35]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2506/NGC-6302-LRGB-Ha-OIII.jpg
   3. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
   4. https://throughlightandtime.com/about/
   5. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap160506.html
   6. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100425.html
   7. https://science.nasa.gov/asset/hubble/planetary-nebula-ngc-6302/
   8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celsius
   9. https://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2021/pne/animations.html
  10. https://throughlightandtime.com/ngc-6302-lrgb-ha-oii-rev-3-crop-cdk-1000-1-june-2025/
  11. https://esahubble.org/news/heic0407/
  12. https://arxiv.org/abs/0711.4359
  13. http://hawastsoc.org/deepsky/sco/index.html
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250605.html
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  17. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  18. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  23. http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=250606
  24. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250607.html
  25. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  26. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  27. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  28. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  30. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  31. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  32. https://www.nasa.gov/
  33. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  34. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  35. http://www.mtu.edu/