Fact Sheet
Last Gasp
Clouds of gas expelled from a dying star glow red and green in this infrared image from the orbiting Spitzer Space Telescope. The object, which is catalogued as NGC 246, is known as a planetary nebula. It formed as the aging star (at the center of the cloud) expelled its outer layers into space. Energy from the hot surface of the star heats the surrounding gas, causing it to glow. A similar fate awaits our own Sun -- in about five billion years. [Credit: NASA/JPL/CFA]
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