NGC 6164-5 is a bipolar nebula surrounding the star HD 148937.
Although the nebula was believed to represent a planetary nebula, it is now understood to represent a shell-like ejected nebula, formed by the winds of its young central star.
Wind blown nebulae are usually considered the outcome of Wolf-Rayet type stars (WR), evolved O-type stars that have left the main sequence, molding their surroundings by way of fierce stellar winds.
In the case of the S-shaped bipolar nebula NGC 6164-5, the central star is not a WR star, but a young O-type supergiant of 40 solar masses.
Relatively few examples of such objects are known to exist, making NGC 6164-5 particularly unique. The true age of the star is not known although estimates of its age vary from a pre-main sequence age of 350,000 years to a more evolved age of one to two million years.
HD 148937 is a peculiar type of Of star with exotic emission lines (carbon emission lines (CIII) equal in strength to Nitrogen (NIII)) and other peculiar spectra indicative of significant mass loss. Only five such stars are known to exist, three in our galaxy and two in Small Magellanic Cloud. (Robert Gendler)

(This is a cropped section of the previous wide image)


Imaged with the 16" f3.75 Dream Astrograph.
Apogee Alta U-16M camera.
HA-RGB image
Ha - 60 min
RGB 20 minutes per channel

(Total of 2 HRS)

Imaged from Tivoli farm in Namibia June 2012.