The cosmos is a dynamic realm where the life cycles of stars create and transform the universe around us. From the explosive end of massive stars to the serene beauty of their remains, each phase contributes to the intricate web of cosmic evolution.
This journey through stellar life reveals not only the birth and death of stars but also the essential elements that foster life on planets like Earth.
X-ray images from the Chandra X-ray Observatory have confirmed that most of the oxygen in the universe is produced by massive stars. This highlights the importance of supernova remnants (SNR), which contain enough oxygen to sustain thousands of solar systems. SNRs are remnants of exploded stars and are crucial to understanding our galaxysince they are responsible for creating all the elements heavier than iron. Without these explosions, the Earth and life as we know it would not exist.
Data from Chandra are shown in blue and violet, while optical data from Hubble and the Very Large Telescope are shown in red and green.
This tangled planetary nebula represents the final stage of a medium-sized star, like our Sun, billions of years in the future. As the star uses up fuel in its core, it expels much of its outer shell, forming twisted filaments. Despite the name, planetary nebulae have no connection to planets; Early astronomers mistakenly thought they looked like planets seen in telescopes. This detailed image was captured by the powerful Hubble Space Telescope.
This is the spiral galaxy seen from a slight angle. Chandra’s X-rays in purple show evidence of a supermassive black hole at its center, while Webb finds dust, gas and stars throughout the galaxy in red, green and blue. This image also contains optical data from NASA Hubble in red, green and blue.
Orion Nebula: This region is a little further away, about 1,500 light years away. Chandra reveals young stars that shine brightly in X-rays, colored here in red, green and blue, while Webb shows the gas and dust (in darker red) that will help build the galaxy’s next set of stars.
NGC 2467 is a vibrant star-forming region located about 13,000 light-years away. Land in the southern constellation of Puppis. Discovered in the 19th century, this area is a huge cloud of gas, mainly hydrogen, that acts as an incubator for new stars. Young, bright blue stars can be seen emerging from the dense clouds, while others remain hidden.
These stars emit intense ultraviolet radiation, which makes the region glow and shapes the surrounding environment. A single massive star above the center of the near-infrared image captured by the Hubble Space Telescope is responsible for most of this radiation.
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