The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has taken images of NGC 2392, nicknamed the Lion Nebula, observing the planetary nebula with its NIRCam and MIRI instruments. The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope previously viewed the object in visible light in 2000, revealing features such as a "mane" of hazy, comet-shaped objects. According to ESA, Webb's high-resolution infrared imaging provides a clearer, more detailed view and highlights compact clumps of dust and haze of ionised gas.

The nebula's shape is powered by the remains of a dying star at its center, a white dwarf whose energy drives the surrounding structures. The bubble of ionised gas forming the lion's "face" is expanding over time and destroying dust in its path, while the "mane" is the interior of a dust shell illuminated by the white dwarf. The comet-like tufts are compact dust clumps that have survived the stellar core's radiation and protect the material behind them.

Astronomers estimate the nebula will eventually disperse in approximately 10,000 years. ESA describes Webb's imagery as freezing the planetary nebula in time, though the star's death and its effects continue. Understanding why the swept-up gas forms complex rings and shells, a common feature of planetary nebulae, remains an ongoing effort.