January 5, 1996
The elements that make you — the calcium in your bones, the oxygen in your lungs — were scattered across space by dying stars long before...
The Toby Jug Nebula
Birthday · January 5, 1996
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APOD published January 5, 1996. Credit: Anglo-Australian Telescope Board. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
Is the only thing unusual about this nebula its shape? Pictured above is the IC 2220 - the Toby Jug Nebula - a reflection nebula surrounding a normal red giant star. Reflection nebulae shine by light reflected from the central star(s). This nebula appears to have been created from the current phase of mass-loss from the central star. Normal gas and dust compose the nebula. The nebula's peculiar but photogenic "bi-polar, bi-conical" shape, however, continue to make it a popular object of study.
Image credit: Anglo-Australian Telescope Board