Simulating the Red Rectangle

This movie shows simulations of the Red Rectangle calculated by the Dutch theorists Vincent Icke from Leiden University in the Netherlands.

These images show the upper half of the nebula only, with the equatorial plane forming the lower edge of the image. The evolving patterns in the gas arise directly from the outflow of gas impinging on the dust torus and interacting with the interstellar medium.

Credit: ESA and Vincent Icke (Leiden University, the Netherlands)