Astronomy Picture of the Day · February 18, 2011

Planetary Nebula Project

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for February 18, 2011 is “Planetary Nebula Project,” an image. The picture is copyrighted by its creator (Credit & Copyright: J-P Metsävainio ( Astro Anarchy )). The original explanation runs about 190 words.

From the explanation

“Cast off by dying sunlike stars, planetary nebulae are a brief but glorious final phase of stellar evolution. The gaseous shrouds are ionized by an extremely hot central source, the shrinking core of a star running out of fuel for nuclear fusion .”

— APOD editors, February 18, 2011

Read the full explanation on science.nasa.gov

At a glance

Date: February 18, 2011
Type: Image
Credit: Credit & Copyright: J-P Metsävainio ( Astro Anarchy )
Copyright: Copyrighted by the credited creator. Ask the copyright holder before reusing it.
Explanation length: About 190 words

All of February 2011 → · 2011 by month → · Full archive since 1995 →

Topics in this entry

Nebulae

Topics are matched from words in the title and explanation.

On this day: February 18 in other years

On Amazon

Popular picks for space fans

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Electronics Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition 32GB Read astronomy and space-history books anywhere. View on Amazon → Electronics Bose QuietComfort Wireless Headphones Noise-cancelling headphones for documentaries and launch livestreams. View on Amazon →

Source

Astronomy Picture of the Day, February 18, 2011 — science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2011-february-18-planetary-nebula-project

Copy taken Oct 28, 2026, 2:39 AM EDT. The image and explanation belong to their creators. OpenOrbit is not affiliated with or endorsed by NASA.