July 25, 2011 - Honolulu Star Advertiser
A striking image of a planetary nebula taken by the Gemini Observatory on Mauna Kea is adding fuel to a fiery debate about the last gasps of dying stars.
Nebulae form after nuclear fusion in a late-life star can no longer counter the pressure of gravity and the star becomes unstable, pulsates and throws off a shell of gas. The expanding gas is ionized and glows due to the radiation still emitted by the central star.
Some scientists say our sun will share this fate.
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