NASA's James Webb Telescope captures new images of the Lion Nebula

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has captured new, highly detailed images of the Lion Nebula, also known as NGC 2392. These images provide a clearer view of the complex structures and gas bubbles surrounding a dying star than previous observations.

The nebula is a planetary nebula, formed when a medium-mass star becomes unstable and sheds its outer layers of gas and dust. This process leaves behind a hot, dense core known as a white dwarf. In the case of the Lion Nebula, the oxygen-rich central star has died, leaving a white dwarf that heats the surrounding material to create an ionized gas bubble resembling a lion's face.

While the Hubble Space Telescope first observed this nebula in 2000, showing its distinctive lion-like shape and mane, the James Webb Space Telescope uses its Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) to peer through dust. This infrared capability allows for a much more detailed view of the fine dust clusters and ionized gas clouds compared to Hubble’s visible-light images.