Tue 29th of Sep 2026 UTC
Astronomy.co.uk Moon Phase Widget
Age: 18 days old
Phase: Waning Gibbous
Illumination: 88%
Distance: 368,664 km
from the NASA archive - 29th September 2026

What causes the swirl in the Shrimp Nebula?

Its high speed is likely. What is sure is that Sh2-188 is one of the larger planetary nebulas on the night sky, by angular size, spanning about half the diameter of the Moon. Moreover, the white-dwarf core -- leftover from the Sun-like star that shed its outer atmosphere -- is moving unusually fast through interstellar space, creating a bow shock most visible on the upper left that is similar to a boat plowing through water. Although faint, the Shrimp Nebula glows also by compressing and brightening gas on its leading edge. The featured image was taken in the light of hydrogen, sulfur, and oxygen by a backyard telescope in Krakow, Poland and then digitally adjusted to approximate the nebula's true colors. APOD's email for image submissions has changed. Please see: APOD Submissions APOD's main NASA site has moved: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod

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Astronomy.co.uk
4th January 2022 at 10:01
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Astronomy.co.uk
2nd January 2022 at 09:07
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1st January 2022 at 09:04
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Astronomy.co.uk
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Astronomy.co.uk
30th December 2021 at 13:57
DEM L249, located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, is an unusual supernova remnant. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Y. Chou (Academia Sinica, Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
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