Supernova 1987A (4) ...
The adjacent image shows a blue supergiant
star called Sher 25 that is expected to become a supernova soon.
Click on the "Show Labels" button to annotate the image. Sher 25 is about
20,000 light years away in an HII ionized region called NGC 3603.
Sher 25: A Close Cousin?
This star is thought to
have much in common with the
progenitor of SN 1987A. It exhibits a ring of ejected material, and the
clouds of matter to the upper right and lower left of the star are nebulae being created by bipolar outflow from
the hot supergiant. These features
may be related to the kinds of pre-supernova mass ejection that led to the rings now
observed for SN 1987A.
