Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                 2026 June 4
   [2]A spherical nebula shows concentric rings of different colors over a
                      dark background with a few stars.

                  A Planetary Nebula with Cosmic Buckyballs
   Image Credit: [3]NASA/[4]ESA/[5]CSA/[6]J. Cami ([7]Western University);
                      Image Processing: [8]K. Beecroft
      Text: [9]Jan Cami ([10]Western University) & [11]Cecilia Chirenti
                ([12]NASA [13]GSFC, [14]UMCP, [15]CRESST II)

   Explanation: What is happening inside this unusual nebula?
   [16]Planetary nebula [17]Tc 1, captured here in exquisite detail by the
   [18]James Webb Space Telescope, is the celestial site where buckyballs
   [19]were first identified in 2010. [20]Buckminsterfullerene — as
   buckyballs are [21]officially called — is a molecule with [22]60 carbon
   atoms (C[60]) arranged in the shape of a [23]soccer ball. The molecule
   is named for architect [24]Buckminster Fuller because of its
   resemblance to the [25]geodesic dome he helped popularize. [26]Webb’s
   new data reveal where the C[60] molecules live in this nebula, and the
   geometry is striking: they populate a thin spherical shell around the
   central star, visible here as the bright edge of the nebula’s glowing
   orange central region. Look closely near the nebula’s heart and a more
   perplexing feature emerges: a delicate structure shaped uncannily like
   an [27]upside-down question mark, fitting punctuation for the many
   questions this nebula still poses.

                      Tomorrow's picture: what's next?
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    Authors & editors: [39]Robert Nemiroff ([40]MTU) & [41]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([42]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [43]Specific rights apply.
            [44]NASA Web Privacy, [45]Accessibility, [46]Notices;
                A service of: [47]ASD at [48]NASA / [49]GSFC,
                         [50]NASA Science Activation
                           & [51]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2606/buckyballs.jpg
   3. https://www.nasa.gov/
   4. https://www.esa.int/
   5. https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/
   6. https://physics.uwo.ca/people/faculty_web_pages/cami.html
   7. https://physics.uwo.ca/
   8. https://app.astrobin.com/u/kates.universe
   9. https://physics.uwo.ca/people/faculty_web_pages/cami.html
  10. https://physics.uwo.ca/
  11. https://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/sci/bio/cecilia.chirenti
  12. https://www.nasa.gov/
  13. https://www.nasa.gov/goddard/
  14. https://www.astro.umd.edu/people/cecilia-chirenti
  15. https://cresst2.umd.edu/
  16. https://esahubble.org/wordbank/planetary-nebula/
  17. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IC_1266
  18. https://science.nasa.gov/mission/webb/
  19. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7q47nuOI0vU
  20. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckminsterfullerene
  21. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1996/summary/
  22. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap030119.html
  23. https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1669891340245-5b787bb7fa70
  24. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckminster_Fuller
  25. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geodesic_dome
  26. https://news.westernu.ca/2026/04/jwst-buckyballs/
  27. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upside-down_question_and_exclamation_marks
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260603.html
  29. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  31. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  32. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  33. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  34. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  35. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  36. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  37. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=260604
  38. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260605.html
  39. https://www.mtu.edu/physics/department/faculty/nemiroff/
  40. https://www.mtu.edu/physics/
  41. https://inspirehep.net/authors/1073087
  42. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  43. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  44. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  45. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  46. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  47. https://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/astrophysics/
  48. https://www.nasa.gov/
  49. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  50. https://science.nasa.gov/learn/about-science-activation/
  51. http://www.mtu.edu/