NGC 6164
NGC 6164-5 is a rectangular, bipolar cloud with rounded corners and a diagonal bar that gives it an inverted S-shaped appearance. It lies about 1,300 parsecs (4,200 light-years) away. The nebula measures about 1.3 parsecs (4.2 light-years) across, and contains gases ejected by the star HD 148937 at its heart. This star is 40 times more massive than the Sun, and at about three to four million years of age, is past the middle of its life span. Stars this massive usually live to be only about six million years old, so HD 148397 is aging fast. It will likely end its life in a violent supernova explosion.
| Observatory: | Gemini Observatory (South) Cerro Pachon, Chile |
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| Telescope: | Gemini South |
| Instrument: | GMOS-S |
| Astronomer: | Gemini Observatory and T. A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) |
| Date of Observation: | 03-25-2006 |
| Filters and Assigned Colors: | Hydrogen-alpha (orange), Oxygen [OIII] (blue) and Sulfur [SII] (red) |
| Exposure Times: | 18min in each filter |
| Location of Image: | Norma |
| Field of View: | 5.8 x 5.5 arcsminutes |
| Orientation: | Rotated 4 degrees CCW from north is down, east is to the right |
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| Link to Full Resolution Image | |
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