行星状星云 NGC 6302 是宇宙同类天体中最受研究的对象之一，它拥有熟悉的外形和令人眼花缭乱的色彩，与其“蝴蝶星云”的绰号相得益彰。但得益于詹姆斯·韦伯空间望远镜（JWST），天文学家们对距离地球约 3400 光年远的该星云的形成有了更深入的了解。他们的研究成果发表在《皇家天文学会月报》上，填补了我们在理解岩石行星的构成物质是如何诞生的方面的空白。
“我们能够在一个物体内同时看到在平静、持久区域形成的冷宝石和在剧烈、快速移动的空间区域产生的炽热污垢，”加的夫大学首席研究员 Mikako Matsuura 在一份声明中说。
与它的名字相反，行星状星云并非行星形成的地方。这个不准确的名称可以追溯到几个世纪前，当时功率低得多的望远镜使其在天文学家看来是圆形的。更详细的观测显示，这些天体呈现出各种形状，它们的形成是当一颗大小介于我们太阳 0.8 到 8 倍之间的恒星在其生命末期开始抛洒质量时产生的，最终会发生新星爆发。行星状星云是罕见的景象，部分原因是它们的寿命只有大约 20,000 年。
![This image takes the viewer on a deep dive into the heart of the Butterfly Nebula, NGC 6302. The Butterfly Nebula, located about 3400 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius, is one of the best-studied planetary nebulae in our galaxy. Planetary nebulae are among the most beautiful and most elusive creatures in the cosmic zoo. These nebulae form when stars with masses between about 0.8 and 8 times the mass of the Sun shed most of their mass at the end of their lives. The planetary nebula phase is fleeting, lasting only about 20 000 years. At the centre of the Butterfly Nebula is the ancient core of a Sun-like star that energises the surrounding nebula and causes it to glow. This scorching central star is hidden from view at optical wavelengths, but Webb’s infrared capabilities have revealed the star and its surroundings in great detail. This image, which combines infrared data from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope with submillimetre observations from the Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA), shows the doughnut-shaped torus and interconnected bubbles of dusty gas that surround the nebula’s central star. The torus is oriented vertically and nearly edge-on from our perspective, and it intersects with bubbles of gas enclosing the star. The bubbles appear bright red in this image, illuminated by the light from helium and neon gas. Outside the bubbles, jets traced by emission from ionised iron shoot off in opposite directions. These features are labeled in an annotated version of this image. [Image description: The complicated structure at the centre of the Butterfly Nebula, NGC 6302. There is a bright source at the centre that is surrounded by greenish nebulosity and several looping lines in cream, orange and pink. One of these lines appears to form a ring oriented vertically and nearly edge-on around the bright source at the centre. Other lines trace out a figure eight shape. Moving outward from these complex lines and green nebulosity, there is a section of red light on either side of the object. The upper-right and lower-left corners of this image show a purple streak pointing out of the image.]](https://popsci.com.cn/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Butterfly-Nebula-Close.jpeg?strip=all&quality=85)
ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, M. Matsuura, ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), N. Hirano, M. Zamani (ESA/Webb) ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, M. Matsuura, ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), N. Hirano, M. Zamani (ESA/Webb)
NGC 6302 被认为是一个双极星云。它有两个向相反方向扩散的部分，图案类似于蝴蝶翅膀，中心有一个黑暗的气体区域形成了蝴蝶的身体。虽然这个中间部分实际上是轮胎状的，但从地球上看，它显得有些扁平。这个位置也遮挡了 NGC 6302 古老的核心恒星。它以大约 395,540 华氏度的温度燃烧，是银河系已知行星状星云中最热的之一。
所有这些能量都负责产生了 JWST 的中红外仪器 (MIRI) 检测到的各种矿物质和有机材料，它们正从相反的两股喷流中喷涌而出。最新的观测结果提供了对蝴蝶星云被称为“环”的致密气体带的广谱观测。天文学家确认了近 200 条光谱线，每条光谱线都包含关于星云旋转混合的原子和分子的信息。
“多年来，科学家们一直在争论宇宙尘埃是如何在太空中形成的。但现在，有了强大的詹姆斯·韦伯空间望远镜的帮助，我们可能终于有了一个更清晰的图景，”Matsuura 说。
![This annotated image takes the viewer on a deep dive into the heart of the Butterfly Nebula, NGC 6302, as seen by the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope. The Butterfly Nebula, located about 3400 light-years away in the constellation Scorpius, is one of the best-studied planetary nebulae in our galaxy. Planetary nebulae are among the most beautiful and most elusive creatures in the cosmic zoo. These nebulae form when stars with masses between about 0.8 and 8 times the mass of the Sun shed most of their mass at the end of their lives. The planetary nebula phase is fleeting, lasting only about 20 000 years. At the centre of the Butterfly Nebula is the ancient core of a Sun-like star that energises the surrounding nebula and causes it to glow. This scorching central star is hidden from view at optical wavelengths, but Webb’s infrared capabilities have revealed the star and its surroundings in great detail. This image, which combines infrared data from Webb with submillimetre observations from the Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA), shows the doughnut-shaped torus and interconnected bubbles of dusty gas that surround the nebula’s central star. The torus is oriented vertically and nearly edge-on from our perspective, and it intersects with bubbles of gas enclosing the star. The bubbles appear bright red in this image, illuminated by the light from helium and neon gas. Outside the bubbles, jets traced by emission from ionised iron shoot off in opposite directions. [Image description: The complicated structure at the centre of the Butterfly Nebula, NGC 6302. There is a bright source at the centre of the image, labeled ‘dying star’. This is surrounded by greenish nebulosity and several looping lines in cream, orange and pink. One of these lines appears to form a ring oriented vertically and nearly edge-on around the bright source at the centre. This ring is labeled in several different places to indicate the near and far sides of a structure called the torus, a dust lane running along the torus and an area where the torus is ionised. Other lines trace out a figure eight shape. These lines are labeled to indicate the inner bubble as well as where the bubble intersects with the torus. Moving outward from these complex lines and green nebulosity, there is a section of red light on either side of the object, labeled ‘outer bubble’. The upper-right and lower-left corners of this image show a purple streak pointing out of the image. These purple streaks are labeled ‘jet’.]](https://popsci.com.cn/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Butterfly-Nebula-Diagram.jpeg?strip=all&quality=85)
大多数宇宙尘埃表现出随机的原子结构，看起来像烟灰。由于 NGC 6302 极端的恒星能量，星云的粒子会熔合成其他材料。这些材料包括石英等结晶硅酸盐，以及铁和镍等闪耀的金属。
研究的作者们对在蝴蝶星云中发现的称为多环芳烃（PAHs）的碳基分子感到特别惊讶。这些蜂窝状的化学成分在地球上最常出现在汽车尾气、木烟和烤焦的吐司中。研究小组指出，这一发现可能是 PAHs 在行星状星云内部形成的第一个确凿证据，并可能有助于解释这些分子在太空中的起源。
行星状星云可能不会创造出像地球这样的实际行星，但它们确实像工厂一样运转，制造出富含碳的行星的构成物质。通过更多的时间和数据，包括 Matsuura 在内的天文学家希望能对我们家园——以及由此衍生的所有生命——的起源有更深入的了解。
“这项发现是在理解行星的基本物质如何聚集方面迈出的重要一步，”他说。
