NASA Captures Stunning Image Of ‘Statue Of Liberty’ Nebula

NASA recently shared a stunning photo of a nebula that features a cosmic Statue of Liberty at its center. According to the agency, this massive cosmic structure was formed by a combination of stars’ formation and death.

The image shared by NASA features a vibrant nebula known as NGC 3576. Its photo was taken by the agency’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. It is located at about 9,000 light-years from Earth and is situated in the Sagittarius region of Milky Way.

Despite having a formal designation, NGC 3576 is often referred to as the Statue of Liberty Nebula primarily due to its appearance. As seen in the image, a dark silhouette can be spotted at the center of the nebula. Like the Statue of Liberty, the silhouette looks like a person holding up a torch.

According to NASA, NGC 3576 shows traces of how it was formed. As explained by the agency, like other nebulas, NGC 3576 was formed through the evolution of stars. Although much of the hot gas and dust found within the nebula came from the supernova explosions of stars, some of the cosmic structure’s other features can be attributed to the young stellar objects within it.

“Such nebulas present a tableau of the drama of the evolution of massive stars, from the formation in vast dark clouds, their relatively brief (a few million years) lives, and the eventual destruction in supernova explosions,” NASA explained in a statement.

As noted by the agency, the nebula is characterized by large loops of gas that were produced by stars that have already died and exploded. Within these gas loops are new stars that were formed during the past few million years. Due to the presence of these new stars, ionized fields of hydrogen gas form within the structure of the nebula.

Through the x-ray capabilities of Chandra, it was able to capture the winds produced by young as they blow through the nebula.

“The diffuse X-ray data detected by Chandra (blue) are likely due to the winds from young, massive stars that are blowing throughout the nebula,” NASA stated.