Hubble's view of planetary nebula NGC 2440

This Hubble image of NGC 2440 shows the last colourful display of a star like our Sun in the act of dying. The star is ending its life by casting off its outer layers of gas, which formed a cocoon around the star's remaining core. Ultraviolet light from the dying star makes the material glow. The burned-out star, called a white dwarf, is the white dot in the centre.