Hubble image of the Ring Nebula (Messier 57)
This new image shows the dramatic shape and colour of the Ring Nebula, otherwise known as Messier 57.
From Earth’s perspective, the nebula looks like a simple elliptical shape with a shaggy boundary. However, new observations combining existing ground-based data with new NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope data show that the nebula is shaped like a distorted doughnut. This doughnut has a rugby-ball-shaped region of lower-density material slotted into in its central “gap”, stretching towards and away from us.
Credit:NASA, ESA, and C. Robert O’Dell (Vanderbilt University).
About the Image
| Id: | heic1310a |
|---|---|
| Type: | Observation |
| Release date: | 23 May 2013, 16:00 |
| Related releases: | heic1310 |
| Size: | 3179 x 3179 px |
About the Object
| Name: | M 57, Messier 57, NGC 6720, Ring Nebula |
|---|---|
| Type: | Milky Way : Nebula : Type : Planetary |
| Distance: | 2500 light years |
| Constellation: | Lyra |
| Category: | Nebulae |
Wallpapers
Coordinates
| Position (RA): | 18 53 35.21 |
|---|---|
| Position (Dec): | 33° 1' 44.13" |
| Field of view: | 2.10 x 2.10 arcminutes |
| Orientation: | North is 11.7° left of vertical |
View in ESASky:
View in WorldWide Telescope:
Colours & filters
| Band | Wavelength | Telescope |
|---|---|---|
| Optical Hß | 487 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
| Optical H II | 469 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
| Optical OIII | 502 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
| Optical Continuum | 645 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
| Optical H-alpha | 656 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
| Optical S II | 673 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |
| Optical NII | 658 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |