Light echo around LRLL 54361
This sequence of images from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows a pulse of light emanating from the protostellar object LRLL 54361. Most if not all of this light results from scattering off circumstellar dust in the protostellar envelope.
An apparent edge-on disk visible at the centre of the object, and three separate structures are interpreted as outflow cavities. The extent and shape of the scattered light changes substantially over a 25.3-day period.
This is caused by the propagation of the light pulse through the nebula. Astronomers propose that the flashes are due to material in a circumstellar disk suddenly being dumped onto a binary pair of forming stars. This unleashes a blast of radiation each time the stars get close to each other in their orbit.
These near-infrared light images are from Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3.
Credit:NASA, ESA, and J. Muzerolle (STScI)
About the Image
Id: | heic1303c |
Type: | Collage |
Release date: | 7 February 2013, 19:00 |
Related releases: | heic1303 |
Size: | 1351 x 906 px |
About the Object
Name: | IC 348, LRLL 54361 |
Type: | Milky Way : Star : Evolutionary Stage : Protostar |
Distance: | 950 light years |
Category: | Stars |
Colours & filters
Band | Wavelength | Telescope |
---|---|---|
Infrared H | 1.6 μm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3 |