Spectacular Death Display of a Red-Giant Star – Telescope Witnesses an Overflowing Cosmic “Jug”

Two almost symmetrical loops of dust and gas depict the dying moments of an ancient red-giant star, as recorded by Gemini South, part of the International Gemini Observatory. This formation, akin to an old-fashioned English jug, is a seldom-observed bipolar reflection nebula. It appears to have been shaped by the interactions between the expiring red giant and a now-fragmented companion star. Credit is given to various institutions and individuals, including the International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA and personnel such as T.A. Rector, J. Miller, M. Rodriguez, and M. Zamani.

Named the Toby Jug Nebula, this one-of-a-kind bipolar reflection nebula was observed by the Gemini South telescope, providing essential knowledge about the growth and transformations of red giants, such as the future metamorphosis of our Sun.

Referred to as the Toby Jug Nebula due to its similarity to a traditional English container used for drinking, the radiant nebula IC 2220 is a scarce cosmic discovery. Positioned roughly 1,200 light-years away in the direction of the Carina constellation (the keel), this nebula is a bipolar, or double-lobed, aggregation of gas and dust. It was formed and lit by the red-giant star at its core. The end-of-life stage of red giants is fairly short, and the formations around them are uncommon, rendering the Toby Jug Nebula an excellent subject for investigating star development.

Image and Learning

A photograph taken by the Gemini South telescope, half of the International Gemini Observatory, managed by NSF’s NOIRLab, exhibits the splendid, nearly identical twin loops of the Toby Jug Nebula and its radiant stellar core. These characteristics are distinct to red giants transitioning from aging stars into planetary nebulae[1], thus providing astronomers essential understanding of the maturation of low to intermediate-mass stars nearing their lifecycle’s end, as well as the cosmic structures they shape.

The Ancestral Star

Within the Toby Jug Nebula lies its forebear, the red-giant star HR3126. Red giants are formed when a star depletes its core hydrogen supply. Without the fusion’s outward force, the star contracts, leading to an increase in core temperature and a subsequent swelling up to 400 times its original dimensions. HR3126 is significantly younger than our Sun — only 50 million years old in comparison to the Sun’s 4.6 billion — and five times as massive, enabling it to exhaust its hydrogen faster and become a red giant.

Formation of the Nebula

As HR 3126 grew, its atmosphere widened, shedding its outer layers. The discharged material created an impressive structure that reflects the central star’s light, made mostly of silicon dioxide (silica), as revealed by detailed infrared studies of the Toby Jug Nebula.

Theories and Findings

Scientists believe that the bipolar structures seen in the Toby Jug Nebula are caused by the interaction between the primary red giant and a secondary star. However, no such companion to HR3126 was discovered. Instead, an extremely compact disk surrounding the central star was seen, indicating that a past binary companion was likely torn into the disk, leading to the creation of the surrounding nebula.

Future Consequences

Approximately five billion years from now, our Sun will also become a red giant after depleting its hydrogen, and will finally transform into a planetary nebula. In the distant future, all that will remain of our Solar System will be a nebula as colorful as the Toby Jug Nebula, with the slowly diminishing Sun at its center.

Footnotes

The name “planetary nebulae” is incorrect, having no connection to planets. It was probably first employed in the 1780s by William Herschel, who observed their circular, planet-like appearance through early telescopes.

The image was created by NOIRLab’s Communication, Education & Engagement group as part of the NOIRLab Legacy Imaging Program. The observations were conducted with Gemini South at Cerro Pachón, Chile, using one of the twin Gemini Multi-Object Spectrographs (GMOS). Despite being designed to divide light into different wavelengths for examination, the GMOS spectrographs also possess impressive imaging abilities, as evidenced by this remarkable view of the Toby Jug Nebula.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Toby Jug Nebula

More about Toby Jug Nebula

• International Gemini Observatory
• NOIRLab
• NSF’s Astronomy Division
• Gemini Multi-Object Spectrographs (GMOS)
• Information about Red Giants