Homunculus nebula

The Homunculus Nebula is a bipolar emission and reflection nebula surrounding the massive star system Eta Carinae. It is located about 7,500 light years away from the Earth. The nebula is located deep within the much larger Carina Nebula, a large star-forming H II region. 

From the Latin homunculus meaning Little Man, the nebula consists of gas which was ejected from Eta Carinae during the Great Eruption, which occurred about 7,500 years before it was observed on Earth, from 1838 to 1845. 

It also contains dust which absorbs much of the light from the extremely luminous central stellar system and radiates it again as infra-red (IR). It is the brightest object in the sky at mid-IR wavelengths.


Within the Homunculus is a smaller Little Homunculus, and within that a shell of shocked material from stellar winds that has been called Baby Homunculus

 References 

Category:Nebulae