JWST maps brain-like nebula PMR 1 in a dying star’s last act

The James Webb Space Telescope provides high‑resolution infrared views of PMR 1, the Exposed Cranium Nebula about 5,000 light‑years away in Vela. Webb’s NIRCam and MIRI imaging reveal a brain‑like structure of inner gases surrounded by a thinner hydrogen shell, with a split that may be caused by polar jets from the dying star. The central star’s nature remains uncertain: it was once considered a Wolf–Rayet type, but this is not confirmed, leaving PMR 1’s true identity—possibly a planetary nebula around a sun‑like star or a Wolf–Rayet remnant—open to interpretation.