Webb telescope reveals the ghostly rings of a dying star

A new image of the planetary nebula NGC 1514 reveals a chaotic scene: rings of a dying star with tangled clouds of gas and dust.

The James Webb Space Telescope captured the stunning image, revealing the intricate structures of a stellar remnant located over 1,500 light-years away in the constellation Taurus.

The observations were made by scientists at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, who played a key role in managing the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) on the Webb telescope during its launch.

The data paints a dramatically detailed picture of a dying star’s final outbursts, bringing clarity to a scene that’s been forming for roughly 4,000 years.

Why rings form around dying stars

At the heart of NGC 1514 is a star that once shone several times brighter and larger than our Sun. Over time, it ballooned outward, expelling layers of gas and dust in a slow, dense stellar wind.

This process created what we now see as glowing rings of material. After shedding its outer layers, only a small, hot core remained – a white dwarf. As this core continued to eject material at higher speeds, it sculpted the expanding gas into complex shells and cavities.

“Before Webb, we weren’t able to detect most of this material, let alone observe it so clearly,” said Mike Ressler, a researcher and project scientist for Webb’s MIRI at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Ressler initially discovered the rings around NGC 1514 in 2010 using data from NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE).

“With MIRI’s data, we can now comprehensively examine the turbulent nature of this nebula,” he said.

Nebula rings form an hourglass shape

The new image shows what appears to be two bright stars at the nebula’s center. These stars are part of a binary system, locked in a tight, elongated orbit that lasts about nine years.

Webb’s observation displays them as a single source surrounded by bright diffraction spikes. An arc of orange dust is draped across the scene.

The nebula’s overall shape appears tilted at about 60 degrees. That gives it a poured-from-a-can appearance, but it’s more likely shaped like an hourglass with its ends cut off. This is especially visible near the top left and bottom right edges of the image. This is where orange dust appears to drift into V-shaped forms.

David Jones is a senior scientist at the Institute of Astrophysics on the Canary Islands, who confirmed the binary system at the center of NGC 1514 in 2017.

“When this star was at its peak of losing material, the companion could have gotten very, very close,” said Jones. “That interaction can lead to shapes that you wouldn’t expect. Instead of producing a sphere, this interaction might have formed these rings.”

Fuzzy rings and translucent dust clouds

In addition to the rings of a dying star, there’s a faint web of translucent dust clouds in the space between them. These soft orange filaments produce a three-dimensional feel.

The rings themselves aren’t smooth. Instead, they appear fuzzy and irregular in Webb’s infrared view.

“We think the rings are primarily made up of very small dust grains,” said Ressler. “When those grains are hit by ultraviolet light from the white dwarf star, they heat up ever so slightly, which we think makes them just warm enough to be detected by Webb in mid-infrared light.”

At the nebula’s center, Webb also detected oxygen. This area is highlighted in pink tones, especially around the edges of bubble-like structures and holes where fast-moving material broke through.

Lack of carbon and complex molecules

What’s most surprising is what the team didn’t find, including carbon and more complex carbon-based molecules like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. These substances are commonly seen in similar planetary nebulae.

One reason could be the orbital interaction between the two central stars, which might have stirred up the expelled matter too quickly for such molecules to form.

With less complex material blocking the way, light from the stars travels farther, making the faint cloud-like nebula rings easier to observe.

Unique rings of a dying star

NGC 1514 has puzzled astronomers since the 18th century. William Herschel made an important observation with his telescope in 1790.

Herschel noted that that the nebula looked like a true cloud. This structure was unlike the star clusters he was accustomed to studying. For over 200 years, scientists lacked the tools to observe the unique rings of a dying star.

Thanks to the Webb Space Telescope’s infrared capabilities, NGC 1514 is finally giving up its secrets.

And while the nebula may appear serene in images, its appearance is anything but static. The dynamic interactions between its stars, dust, and gas will continue to reshape the scene for thousands of years.

One final detail in the image catches the eye: a bright blue star at the bottom left. Although it seems part of the action, it’s just a bystander. That star lies much closer to Earth and has nothing to do with the drama unfolding in the dying embers of NGC 1514.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Michael Ressler (NASA-JPL), Dave Jones (IAC)

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