NASA's Hubble Telescope Captures "Last Gasp" Of Dying Binary Star System

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) regularly captures stunning images of our universe, leaving space lovers mesmerized. The social media handles of the US Space Agency are a treasure trove for those who love to watch educational videos and fascinating images showcasing Earth and space. Now, in its recent post, the agency's Hubble Space Telescope shared a picture of the "last gasp" of a dying binary star system.

"At the center of the nebula NGC 2346 is a pair of stars that are so close together that they orbit around each other every 16 days! This #HubbleClassic shows the "last gasp" of this binary star system as it dies. Located about 2,000 light-years away, NGC 2346 resides in the constellation Monoceros." NASA said while sharing the image.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Hubble Space Telescope (@nasahubble)

It is to be noted that NGC 2346 is a so-called "planetary nebula," which is ejected from Sun-like stars which are near the ends of their lives. 

The central star of NGC 2346 is believed to be a relatively near pair of stars that orbit each other every 16 days, which makes the galaxy unusual. It is thought that the binary star was initially farther apart. But one of the binary's components essentially swallowed its companion star as it developed, grew larger, and became a red-giant star.

Subsequently, the companion star spiralled downwards inside the red giant, releasing gas into a ring surrounding the binary system. Later, a faster stellar wind arose perpendicular to the ring and inflated two enormous "bubbles" when the red giant's hot core was revealed. "This two-stage process is believed to have resulted in the butterfly-like shape of the nebula. NGC 2346 lies about 2,000 light-years away from us, and is about one-third of a light-year in size," the European Space Agency explained.

In the image, a two-lobed structure of gas is seen expanding out from a central pinkish region. It almost resembles dark red and orange wings. The black background of the space is dotted with some small stars.

Since being shared, the post has amassed over 58,000 likes and several reactions on the platform.

"Lovely," said a user.

"Hubble is cool," stated another user.

A third user said, "The science is so amazing"

"Wow," remarked a person.