Particle.news
Download on the App Store
3 ARTICLES
·
6h ago

Webb Exposes Butterfly Nebula’s Hidden Star and Planet‑Building Dust

Peer‑reviewed JWST–ALMA maps of NGC 6302 show a 220,000 K core with crystalline silicate dust, clarifying how Sun‑like stars shed the material that builds planets.

The James Webb Space Telescope, with data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, together captured the dusty core of the Butterfly Nebula.
Image

Overview

  • JWST’s mid‑infrared data, combined with ALMA radio observations, pinpoint the long‑obscured central star of NGC 6302 at roughly 220,000 K.
  • Nearly 200 distinct spectral lines were cataloged, letting researchers chart the nebula’s chemical makeup and layered structure.
  • A dense torus contains crystalline silicates and relatively large grains about a micron across, indicating long‑term dust growth.
  • Scientists report PAHs within this oxygen‑rich nebula and identify opposing jets carrying iron and nickel from the core region.
  • Separately, Webb and Hubble imaged the edge‑on IRAS 04302 “Butterfly Star” disk about 525 light‑years away, reported to span ~65 billion km with possible planet‑carved features.