<p class="c2"><strong></strong><strong>The intricate structure of the Helix Nebula, seen in January, is featured as one of National Geographic News editor's picks for the best space pictures of 2012. (<a class="c17" href="http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/photos/nebulae-gallery/">See more nebula pictures</a>.)</strong></p><p class="c2">The rust-colored remains of a star like our sun, the Helix puffed up as it died and shed its shells of gas and dust into space.</p><p class="c2">In visible light, fine details in the Helix are largely obscured by dust. But the infrared view—snapped by the&nbsp;<a class="c17" href="http://www.eso.org/public/">European Southern Observatory'</a>s VISTA telescope—can pierce this veil to see radiating filaments of cooler gas in the rings as well as a faint halo of thinly spread gas that extends to at least four light-years from the dead star's core.</p><p class="c2"><a class="c17" href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/01/pictures/120120-best-space-pictures-179-costa-concordia/">Full story&gt;&gt;</a></p><p class="c2"><strong>Why We Love It</strong></p><p class="c2">"This deep-space picture has an unusual sense of scale: The individual bright spots placed throughout the image give it a 3-D feeling of depth, while the fine detail hints at the huge size of this planetary nebula."—<em></em><em>Chris Combs, news photo editor</em></p>