Thor has his day (Thursday) and also possesses his helmet in the sky. NGC 2359, also known as Thor's helmet, is a hat-shaped cosmic cloud with wing-like structures.
This nebula boasts a massive size fitting for the god Thor in Norse mythology, with a diameter of about 30 light-years (1 light-year is the distance light travels in one year, approximately 9.46 trillion kilometers). This structure resembles an interstellar bubble created by strong stellar winds blowing from a massive star.
At the center of the nebula is a bright and massive star known as a Wolf-RAY star. The Wolf-RAY star is a very hot and massive star, believed to be in a short evolutionary stage before becoming a supernova.
NGC 2359 is located about 15,000 light-years from Earth, positioned in the direction of Canis Major. The image captures the star's natural color using narrowband filter data while also showcasing the delicate filament structures within the nebula.
The Wolf-RAY star located at the center of Thor's helmet is expected to explode as a supernova within thousands of years.