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Credit & Copyright: Stéphane Vetter
(Nuits sacrées)
Explanation:
It's easy to get lost following the intricate,
looping, and twisting filaments of
supernova remnant Simeis 147.
Also cataloged as Sharpless 2-240, the filamentary nebula goes by the popular nickname
the Spaghetti Nebula.
Seen toward the boundary of the
constellations of the Bull
(Taurus)
and the Charioteer
(Auriga),
the impressive gas structure covers nearly 3
degrees on the sky,
equivalent to 6 full moons.
That's about 150
light-years
at the stellar debris cloud's estimated distance of 3,000 light-years.
This composite image includes data taken through
narrow-band filters isolating emission from
hydrogen
(red) and
oxygen (blue) glowing gas.
The supernova
remnant has an estimated age of about 40,000 years,
meaning light from this massive stellar explosion first reached the
Earth when
woolly mammoths roamed free.
Besides the expanding remnant, this cosmic catastrophe left behind a
pulsar: a spinning
neutron star
that is the remnant of the original star's core.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: supernova remnant
Publications with words: supernova remnant
See also:
- APOD: 2024 April 16 Á Filaments of the Vela Supernova Remnant
- APOD: 2024 April 3 Á Unusual Nebula Pa 30
- APOD: 2024 March 25 Á Sonified: The Jellyfish Nebula Supernova Remnant
- The Pencil Nebula Supernova Shock Wave
- APOD: 2023 December 26 Á IC 443: The Jellyfish Nebula
- Supernova Remnant Cassiopeia A
- APOD: 2023 November 21 Á Flemings Triangular Wisp