The Helix Nebula, located 650 light-years from Earth, has baffled scientists for decades. The planetary nebula was created by a dying star that shed its outer layers of gas, leaving behind a small ...

For the Helix Nebula, we are looking down the barrel, and the stellar core is easily visible, right in the center. The Helix is found pretty low in the night sky, is bright but spread out over a ...