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The “spookiest” nebulae are clouds of gas and dust whose shapes resemble familiar figures—but the ghostly colors and forms have ordinary astronomical causes. Ultraviolet light can make gas glow, dust can reflect starlight, and stars can sculpt surrounding material. Four striking examples are PMR 1, IC 63, NGC 2080, and IC 2118; despite their shared eerie nicknames, they are not all the same kind of object.
What makes a nebula look spooky?
A nebula is a cloud of gas and dust, but its appearance depends on what is illuminating it and how an image records that light. Some clouds emit light after nearby stars energize their gas. Others reflect starlight from dust. Dense dust can also block light behind it, creating dark lanes and sharp silhouettes.
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Many telescope images combine observations in wavelengths people cannot see directly, then assign visible colors to those measurements. The resulting image reveals structure and chemistry; it should not automatically be read as a view of what the object would look like to the unaided eye.
Which nebulae look like ghosts, skulls, and witches?
Exposed Cranium Nebula (PMR 1): a brain inside a transparent skull
NASA describes PMR 1 as a cloud of gas and dust surrounding a dying star. Its nickname comes from the brain-like texture and the dark vertical lane that divides the nebula, creating the impression of a skull. Webb observed it in near-infrared light with NIRCam and mid-infrared light with MIRI. The outer shell, expelled first, consists mostly of hydrogen; the inner cloud contains a mixture of gases. NASA’s scale bar shows 0.5 light-years across 20 arcseconds.
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The star’s mass has not yet been determined, so its eventual fate is not settled. It would be premature to claim that it will explode as a supernova. Webb’s views are infrared observations rendered for study, not ordinary visible-light photographs. NASA’s Webb feature on PMR 1 was published February 25, 2026 and updated June 19, 2026.
Ghost of Cassiopeia (IC 63): red hydrogen and blue-reflecting dust
About 550 light-years away in Cassiopeia, IC 63 is illuminated by the nearby star Gamma Cassiopeiae. Ultraviolet radiation from the star makes hydrogen in the nebula glow red, while dust reflects blue light. NASA says Gamma Cassiopeiae releases energy equal to 34,000 Suns; the broader nebulous region around the star spans about two degrees, or roughly four full-Moon widths.
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Hubble photographed IC 63 in August 2016. The ghostly look has a physical explanation, but the object is not an easy naked-eye target: NASA says a large telescope is needed to see it. NASA’s Hubble account of IC 63 was updated March 31, 2025.
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NGC 2080 is a star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, in the constellation Dorado—not a planetary nebula. NASA places it about 168,000 light-years away. In Hubble’s image, two bright compact regions, A1 and A2, form the ghost’s “eyes”; A2 contains several hidden massive stars. Massive stars and their winds shape the surrounding gas.
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The image was observed on March 28, 2000, with Hubble’s WFPC2 camera and narrow-band filters. NASA’s description maps red and blue image light to heated hydrogen emissions and green to glowing oxygen. Those assigned colors help distinguish the emissions; they are not a claim that the scene appears to the eye in exactly those hues. The displayed image field corresponds to roughly 55 light-years square. NASA’s Hubble description of the Ghost Head is dated December 19, 2001 and was updated August 17, 2025.
Witch Head Nebula (IC 2118): a reflection cloud lit by Rigel
IC 2118 gets its witch-like outline from clouds of dust reflecting light from Rigel, the bright star in Orion. Dust scatters blue light more efficiently than red, contributing to the nebula’s blue appearance. NASA’s October 31, 2024 Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) gives approximate figures of about 800 light-years for the distance to both the nebula and Rigel, and about 50 light-years across for the Witch Head. These are rounded descriptions, not precision measurements.
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NASA has also shown the clouds in an infrared image from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE). The Witch Head is a reflection nebula: its appearance is not evidence that it is glowing like an emission nebula. See NASA’s 2024 APOD on Rigel and the Witch Head Nebula and NASA’s WISE image feature.
How their shapes and lighting differ
| Object | What the nickname evokes | Physical context | What produces the appearance | Distance or scale stated by NASA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PMR 1, Exposed Cranium | A brain-like structure inside a skull | Gas and dust around a dying star | Brain-like inner structure and a dark lane; viewed by Webb in near- and mid-infrared | Scale bar: 0.5 light-years / 20 arcseconds |
| IC 63, Ghost of Cassiopeia | A faint ghostly cloud | Hydrogen and dust near Gamma Cassiopeiae | Ultraviolet radiation makes hydrogen glow red; dust reflects blue light | About 550 light-years away; broader nebulous region spans about two degrees |
| NGC 2080, Ghost Head | A face with two bright “eyes” | Star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud | Hydrogen and oxygen emissions shown in assigned Hubble colors; massive stars shape the gas | About 168,000 light-years away; displayed field roughly 55 light-years square |
| IC 2118, Witch Head | A witch-like profile | Dust cloud reflecting Rigel’s light | Dust scatters blue light more efficiently than red | About 50 light-years across and about 800 light-years away, per NASA APOD (2024) |
Why a spooky nickname does not tell you what kind of nebula it is
These names describe how an object looks, not how it formed. The Ghost Head is a star-forming region, while PMR 1 surrounds a dying star. IC 63’s hydrogen glows under ultraviolet radiation, and the Witch Head reflects Rigel’s light from dust. Similar visual drama can therefore come from different physical processes and different stages of stellar evolution.
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Planetary nebulae offer another contrast: NASA describes them as glowing remains of dying lightweight stars. The Helix Nebula and NGC 3242, also called the Ghost of Jupiter, are examples. Despite its name, the Ghost Head is not a planetary nebula. NASA’s overview of planetary nebulae explains the class.
Can you see these nebulae through a telescope?
Not every spectacular observatory image translates into a clear view through a consumer telescope. For IC 63 specifically, NASA says a large telescope is needed to see it. The cited descriptions do not establish comparable visual-observing requirements for the other three objects, and processed images should not be treated as a promise of what an observer will see at the eyepiece.
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