NGC 2359
07h 18m 30s, −13° 13′ 48″J2000 epoch | |
|---|---|
| Right ascension | 07h 18m 30s[1] |
| Declination | −13° 13.8′ ″[1] |
| Distance | 11,960[2] ly |
| Constellation | Canis Major |
| Notable features | HII (ionized) region |
| Designations | GUM 4, LBN 227.66-00.09, SH 2-298, GRS 227.80 -00.20, LBN 1041, RCW 5[1] |
NGC 2359 (also known as Thor's Helmet) is an
It is also catalogued as Sharpless 2-298 and Gum 4.[4]
The nebula has an overall bubble shape, but with complex filamentary structures. The nebula contains several hundred solar masses of ionised material, plus several thousand more of unionised gas. It is largely interstellar material swept up by winds from the central star, although some material does appear to be enriched with the products of fusion and is likely to come directly from the star.[5] The expansion rate of different portions of the nebula varies from 10 km/s to at least 30 km/s, leading to age estimates of 78,500 - 236,000 years. The nebula has been studied at radio and x-ray wavelengths, but it is still unclear whether it was produced at the class O main sequence stage of development, as a red supergiant, luminous blue variable, or mainly as a Wolf-Rayet star.[2]
NGC 2361 is a bright knot of nebulosity on one edge of the central ring of NGC 2359.
References
- ^ a b c "NGC 2359". SIMBAD. Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
- ^ .
- ^ SEDS: NGC 2359 Archived 2010-03-26 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "The Gum Catalog". Galaxymap.org. Archived from the original on 2013-07-16. Retrieved 2013-10-06.
- S2CID 123709946.
External links
