NASA / ESA’s Hubble Space Telescope captured this mesmerizing image of the Bubble Nebula, also known as NGC 7635, located 7,100 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cassiopeia. This celestial object appears to contain a massive star trapped inside a bubble that burns a million times brighter than our Sun.
As the star burns, it produces powerful gaseous outflows called stellar winds that howl at more than four million miles per hour. Over billions of years, the winds have pushed nearby gas and dust outward, forming a layer around the star that’s denser in some areas than others. It is these stellar winds that have given NGC 7635 its bubble shape.
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Based on the rate the star is expending energy, scientists estimate in 10-20 million years it will explode as a supernova. And the bubble will succumb to a common fate: It’ll pop,” said Alison Takemura, NASA Web Editor.
