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Picture post: The Eye of God

Today’s space picture is another contribution from the European Southern Observatory, or the European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere, to use its full name. This is the Helix planetary nebula, a giant shell of gas 700 light years given off by a star dying into a white dwarf.

eye helix.jpg

ESO says:

Despite being photographically very spectacular the Helix is hard to see visually as its light is thinly spread over a large area of sky and the history of its discovery is rather obscure. It first appears in a list of new objects compiled by the German astronomer Karl Ludwig Harding in 1824. The name Helix comes from the rough corkscrew shape seen in the earlier photographs.

The resemblance of the Helix to an eye has led to this nebula being christened ‘The Eye of God’ (Telegraph, Sun).

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    Tina said:

    What telescope took this picture? And what kind of telescope is that? Sorry for asking this, but I can’t find the information anywhere.

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