Astronomers have uncovered an extraordinary sight in the cosmos — a nebula resembling a flame-throwing guitar. This discovery was made possible by the combined efforts of NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope. Named Guitar Nebula, it showcases the cosmic artistry of a collapsed star, ejecting streams of energetic particles in a spectacle that looks like a flame-throwing guitar rocking out a concert in space.
A NASA video highlights Chandra’s role in capturing a filament of energetic particles at the top of the guitar-like structure. The caption reads, “Normally found only in heavy metal bands or certain post-apocalyptic films, a ‘flame-throwing guitar’ has now been spotted moving through space, adding, “X-rays from Chandra show a filament of energetic matter and antimatter particles, about two light-years or 12 trillion miles long, blasting away from the pulsar.”
Watch the video here:
At the core of this cosmic guitar lies a pulsar, PSR B2224+65. Pulsars are highly magnetised, rotating neutron stars that emit regular pulses of radiation, much like the beacon of a lighthouse. The pulsar’s dynamic energy gives rise to the nebula’s striking shape. “The guitar shape comes from bubbles blown by particles ejected from the pulsar through a steady wind. Because the pulsar is moving from the lower right to the upper left, most of the bubbles were created in the past as the pulsar moved through a medium with variations in density,” NASA said in a release.
The video highlights the movement of the pulsar and its filament heading towards the upper left of the frame, based on Chandra data collected in 2000, 2006, 2012 and 2021. Meanwhile, a separate video created using observations from the Hubble Space Telescope — spanning 1994, 2001, 2006 and 2021 — captures the motion of the pulsar and nearby smaller features.
Data analysis reveals the same variations responsible for creating bubbles in the hydrogen nebula — shaping the guitar-like outline — also influence the number of particles emitted to the right of the pulsar. This activity leads to slight fluctuations in the brightness of the X-ray filament, resembling a cosmic blowtorch extending from the guitar’s tip.
The filament’s formation sheds light on how electrons and positrons navigate through the interstellar medium. It also illustrates how these particles are introduced into the surrounding space.
The findings have been documented in a study published in The Astrophysical Journal.