#MIRI

NASA's Webb Telescope has revealed the cloak of dust around the second star, shown at left in red, at the center of the Southern Ring Nebula for the first time. It is a hot, dense white dwarf star. As it transformed into a white dwarf, the star periodically ejected mass, the shells of material you see here. The bluer star at right in this image has also shaped the scene, helping stir up the ejected material. The disk around the stars is also wobbling, shooting out spirals of gas and dust over long periods of time. Webb captured this scene in mid-infrared light, most of which can only be observed from space. Mid-infrared light helps researchers detect objects enshrouded in dust, like the red star. This Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) image also offers an incredible amount of detail, including a cache of distant galaxies in the background.