Water-building molecule in Ring Nebula

The Ring Nebula at optical wavelengths as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope, with Herschel data acquired with SPIRE and PACS over a wavelength range of 51–672 micrometres for the region identified. The spectra have been cropped and the scales stretched in order to show the OH⁺ emission, a molecular ion important for the formation of water. ESA’s Herschel space observatory is the first to detect this molecule in planetary nebulas – the product of dying Sun-like stars.

Full story: New molecules around old stars