Cometary Knots around a Dying Star These gigantic, tadpole-shaped objects are probably the result of a dying star’s last gasps. Dubbed ‘cometary knots’ because their glowing heads and gossamer tails resemble comets, the gaseous objects probably were formed during a star’s final stages of life. Credit: Robert O’Dell, Kerry P. Handron (Rice University, Houston, Texas) and NASA/ESA

Cometary Knots around a Dying Star

These gigantic, tadpole-shaped objects are probably the result of a dying star’s last gasps. Dubbed ‘cometary knots’ because their glowing heads and gossamer tails resemble comets, the gaseous objects probably were formed during a star’s final stages of life.

Credit: Robert O’Dell, Kerry P. Handron (Rice University, Houston, Texas) and NASA/ESA