Evolution of the colorful protoplanetary nebula Henize 3-1475
(ORDO NEWS) — Here is the protoplanetary nebula Henize 3-1475, located at a distance of about 18,000 light-years from Earth.
This astronomical object appeared as a result of the fact that a massive star approached the end of its life cycle and began to shed its own gaseous shells, which scatter through outer space due to the influence of the stellar wind.
The star hiding in the center of the nebula is about 12,000 times brighter than the Sun, and its mass is 3-5 times the mass of our star.
The processes taking place in Henize 3-1475 are so high-energy that the stellar gas shells move at a speed of about four million kilometers per hour!
If we had a spacecraft moving at such a speed, and tomorrow we would launch it to the Red Planet, then the entry into orbit would take place in about 44 hours.
In no more than 10,000 years (already, of course, less), the protoplanetary nebula evolves into a planetary nebula, which will be a stable shell of ionized gas around a white dwarf - the cooling core of a dead star.
The rate of “bloat” will noticeably slow down as the stellar winds become less energetic. The object itself will become brighter for observers.
It is worth noting that the central star of the Henize 3-1475 nebula makes a complete revolution around its own axis in a fantastic 1,500 years, while the rotation period of the Sun is ≈25 days at the equator and ≈38 days near the poles.
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