Sunny Priyan
The 'wings' of NGC 6302 are regions of gas heated to more than 36,000 degrees Fahrenheit that are tearing across space at more than 600,000 miles an hour.
Credit: NASA
NGC 6302 lies between 2,500 and 3,800 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius.
Credit: NASA
The observations highlight a new pattern of near-infrared emission from singly ionized iron, which traces an S shape from lower left to upper right.
Image Credit: Pixabay
This iron emission likely traces the central star systemÃs most recent ejections of gas, which are moving at much faster speeds than the previously expelled mass.
Credit: NASA
The star or stars at its center are responsible for the nebula's appearance.
Image Credit: Pixabay
In their death throes, they have cast off layers of gas periodically over the past couple thousand years.
Image Credit: Pixabay