It’s always a fun day for space lovers when the NASA team has new images to share from the James Webb Space Telescope. Today’s pair have brains on the brain, taking a look at the appropriately named Exposed Cranium Nebula. More officially, this cloud of space dust and debris is known as Nebula PMR1. Photos shared today may capture a moment in a star’s final phase, while also providing clues as to how the nebula got its brain-like shape.
“The nebula appears to have distinct regions that capture different stages of its evolution – an outer shell of gas that was blown out first and consists mostly of hydrogen, and an inner cloud with more structure that contains a mixture of different gases,” NASA’s blog post reads. The dark line running vertically through the nebula, giving it a skulllike appearance, “may be the result of an explosion or outflow from the central star, usually in the form of twin jet bursts in opposite directions.” Both Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and its Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) were used to document the nebula.
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