NASA Captures Stunning Nebula Shaped Like ‘Lion’s Head’
Webb’s infrared view shows compact dust clumps and surviving filaments as the white dwarf at NGC 2392’s center reshapes the nebula.
- NASA's James Webb Space Telescope captured new high-resolution images of NGC 2392, the Lion Nebula, using its NIRCam and MIRI instruments to reveal intricate dust structures and ionized gas.
- At the nebula's center, a white dwarf—the oxygen-rich remnant of a dying star—drives the structure's evolution by "cooking" everything from the inside and producing an expanding bubble of ionized gas.
- While the Hubble Space Telescope viewed the nebula in 2000, Webb's infrared vision exposes compact clumps of dust and a haze of ionized gas forming the protective "mane" of the lion.
- Astronomers estimate the Lion Nebula will eventually disperse in approximately 10,000 years as gas and dust migrate away from the stellar core, though it remains a primary target of ongoing study.
- NGC 2392 is distinct from another celestial feature in the Cepheus constellation also called the "Lion Nebula"—the diffuse nebula Sharpless 2-132, which shares the nickname due to its lion-like shape.
52 Articles
52 Articles
James Webb captures a cosmic lion sculpted by a dying star
James Webb has captured a striking new infrared view of NGC 2392, the Lion Nebula, revealing the dramatic aftermath of a dying Sun-like star. At its center, a scorching white dwarf is blasting radiation into surrounding gas and dust, carving out the nebula’s lion-like face while illuminating a sprawling “mane” of surviving dusty clumps.
James Webb telescope captures stunning image of Lion Nebula in spellbinding detail
NASA has shared new images of the Lion Nebula captured with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) – and the frames depict the celestial marvel in a level of detail that astronomers were yet to see.The Lion Nebula, or NGC 2392, is the shrunken core of a dying star (a white dwarf) surrounded by expanding gas and dust located roughly 6,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Gemini.First discovered by the astronomer William Herschel in 1787…
Behold the majestic mane of the Lion Nebula | Space photo of the day for Aug. 11, 2026
The Lion Nebula glows gloriously in this new snapshot from the James Webb Space Telescope, made using data from the NIRCam and MIRI instruments. Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)The Lion Nebula glows gloriously in this new snapshot by the James Webb Space Telescope using data from JWST's MIRI instrument. Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)With a glorious mane of glowing purple g…
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