Butterfly-shaped nebula spotted in outer space

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) spotted a butterfly-shaped nebula in outer space.

On Instagram, Sunday, NASA called it the "Butterfly Nebula" for its shape and red color.

"Don't let those graceful wings fool you. It might look like NASA Hubble captured an image of a peaceful cosmic butterfly, but the truth is vastly more violent," the caption read.

"With a wingspan covering over [three] light-years, the Butterfly Nebula is ejecting layers of gas from a dying star located at its center," it added.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by NASA (@nasa)

According to NASA, the glow is caused by "streams of intense ultraviolet radiation" but the nebula will eventually "fade and leave behind a small stellar corpse called a white dwarf."

The government agency also said that "our middle-aged Sun" can expect the same in about six billion years once it runs out of fuel.

—Franchesca Viernes/MGP, GMA News