APOD: 2021 May 18 - Jets from the Necklace Nebula

Good morning, Rallypoint. Today's Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) is titled "Jets from the Necklace Nebula." The constellation Sagitta (The Arrow) is located between Aquilla (The Eagle), Cygnus (The Swan), and Lyra (The Lyre). It is one of the smallest modern constellations (86 out of 88), which may explain why you haven't heard of it (I hadn't). Embedded in Sagitta is the Necklace Nebula, a planetary nebula formed by two stars coupled in a tight orbit. The red clouds at the upper left and lower right are the relativistic jets produced by the stars.

This writeup on the Necklace Nebula is from the ESA website:

"Roughly 10 000 years ago, one of the aging stars expanded and engulfed its smaller companion, creating something astronomers call a “common envelope”. The smaller star continued to orbit inside its larger companion, increasing the bloated giant’s rotation rate until large parts of it spun outwards into space. This escaping ring of debris formed the Necklace Nebula, with particularly dense clumps of gas forming the bright “diamonds” around the ring."