Thor's Helmet - A Wolf-Rayet Star

Thor's Helmet - A Wolf-Rayet Star
NGC 2359 - Thor's Helmet is a huge emissions nebula that surrounds a Wolf-Rayet star. Residing at 11,960 light years distant, the nebula spans 30 light years in diameter. Wolf-Rayet stars have extremely hot surface temperatures and display little to no hydrogen lines in their spectra, meaning that they have depleted their supply of hydrogen and are no fusing helium and heavier metals in their core. Thor's helmet is found in the constellation Canis Major and is on display at Frosty Drew Observatory during only the darkest nights of winter. We captured this at Frosty Drew Observatory on January 2, 2017.
Author:
Scott MacNeill
Entry Date:
Nov 27, 2020
Published Under:
Scott MacNeill's Media
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