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To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
25 Images to Celebrate NASA's Chandra 25th Anniversary
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of its launch, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is releasing 25 never-before-seen views of a wide range of cosmic objects.
A matter of distance
In space, being outshone is an occupational hazard. This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image captures a galaxy named NGC 7250. Despite being remarkable in its own right — it has bright bursts of star formation and recorded supernova explosions — it blends into the background somewhat thanks...
The difference between distance and dust
Measuring the distance to truly remote objects like galaxies, quasars and galaxy clusters is a crucial task in astrophysics, particularly when it comes to studying the early Universe, but it’s a difficult one. Only in the case of a few nearby objects like the Sun, planets and some nearby stars...
The Carina Nebula
The Carina Nebula is a large bright nebula that surrounds several clusters of stars. It contains two of the most massive and luminous stars in our Milky Way galaxy, Eta Carinae and HD 93129A. Located 7500 light years away, the nebula itself spans some 260 light years across, about 7 times the...
Messier 100 and supernova SN 2006X
Similar in appearance to our own Milky Way, Messier 100 is a grand spiral galaxy that presents an intricate structure, with a bright core and two prominent arms. The galaxy harbours numerous young and hot massive stars as well as extremely hot regions of ionised hydrogen. Two smaller arms are...
SN 1996cr in Circinus galaxy
This composite image shows the central regions of the nearby Circinus galaxy, located about 12 million light years away. Data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is shown in blue and data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space telescope is shown in yellow ("I-band"), red (hydrogen emission), cyan...
The Circinus Galaxy and the position of SN 1996cr
The SuSI New Technology Telescope image as shown in eso0832b is shown again with a blow-up of the location of SN 1996cr. The data obtained in April 1994 of the supernova is not yet visible in this image. However, a small, powerful region of ionised gas is apparent and may be linked with the...
The Circinus galaxy
Colour image of the Circinus Galaxy based on ESO SuSI New Technology Telescope data obtained in April 1993, that is, about three years before the supernova exploded. The observations were made through different narrow-band filters (ionised hydrogen, ionised oxygen, and ionised iron).
The spiral galaxy NGC 5584 and SN 2007af
This image is a colour-composite of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 5584. It is based on data collected by the Paranal Science Team with the FORS1 instrument on Kueyen, the second 8.2-m Unit Telescope of ESO's Very Large Telescope. The supernova SN 2007af is the bright object seen slightly below...
VLT image of supernova in beautiful spiral galaxy NGC 1288
Colour-composite image of the Type Ia supernova SN 2006dr in the spiral galaxy NGC 1288, as observed with ESO's Very Large Telescope. It is based on images acquired through several filters (B, V, R, I and H-alpha) for a total exposure time of 5 minutes. The supernova is the bright object...
SN1987A in the Large Magellanic Cloud
Image obtained with the ESO Schmidt Telescope of the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud. Supernova 1987A is clearly visible as the very bright star in the middle right. At the time of this image, the supernova was visible with the unaided eye.
SN 1987A and the Honeycomb Nebula
The brightest supernova which has exploded in the current epoch is SN 1987A, located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, at the edge of the Tarantula nebula. The explosion was seen on 23 February 1987 and since then the ejected material has created a set of ring structures. The outer ring is clearly...
The hooked galaxy and its companion
Composite image based on data acquired with the FORS1 multi-mode instrument in April and May 2006 for the European Supernova Collaboration. The observations were made in four different filters (B, V, R, and I) that were combined to make a colour image. The field of view covers 5.6 x 8.3 arcmin....
The hooked galaxy and its companion - annotated image
Annotated version of ESO Press Photo eso0622. The two interacting galaxies and the location of SN 2005cf are indicated. When the supernova exploded, more than a year ago, it was almost as bright as its host galaxy. One year later, it is much dimmer and can only be studied with the largest...
The stellar cluster Hodge 301
Above and to the right of the central cluster in the Tarantula Nebula, another cluster of bright, massive stars is seen. Known to astronomers as Hodge 301, it is about 20 million years old, or about 10 times older than R136. The more massive stars of Hodge 301 have therefore already exploded as...
SN 2006X in Messier 100
Comparison between two images of Messier 100, taken in March 2002 with the VIMOS instrument on Melipal (VLT) and in February 2006 with FORS1 on Kueyen (VLT). The difference in colours comes from the different filters used. The supernova SN 2006X is clearly present in the FORS1 image as the...
Twin explosions in gigantic dusty potato crisp
The beautiful edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 3190 with tightly wound arms and a warped shape that makes it resemble a gigantic potato crisp, as seen by ESO's Very Large Telescope. Supernova SN 2002bo is found in between the 'V' of the dust lanes in the south-western part of NGC 3190. SN 2002cv is...
Supernova 2005dh and spiral galaxy NGC 1559
Colour-composite image of the spiral galaxy NGC 1559 in the Reticulum constellation, obtained with the multi-mode FORS1 instrument on ESO's 8.2m VLT. The supernova, SN 2005df, is visible as the bright star just above the galaxy. Many background galaxies can also be seen in this image.
SNR 0543-689 in the LMC
This is a bright, compact nebula that is located on the North-Western rim of the ringshaped nebula DEM L 299. It is known as SNR 0543-689 and it is the remnant of a more recent supernova explosion. The sky field measures 3.6 x 3.5 arcmin. North is up and East is left.
Spiral galaxy NGC 7424 and SN2001ig
These are colour composites based on FORS 2 and VIMOS images taken in the R-band (15 sec), V (60 sec) and B (90 sec). Two composite colour-coded image of a part of NGC 7424. The left image was made from an exposure taken with the FORS 2 instrument on VLT Yepun on June 16, 2002. In this, the...
Spiral galaxy NGC 6118 and SN 2004dk
Composite colour-coded image of the "grand design" spiral galaxy NGC 6118, at a distance of 80 million light-years. It is based on images obtained with the multi-mode VIMOS instrument on the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) in three different wavebands. The image covers 6.7 x 5.8 square...
Spiral galaxy NGC 6118
These are almost-true colour composites based on images made with the multi-mode VIMOS instrument on the 8.2-m Melipal (Unit Telescope 3) of ESO's Very Large Telescope. In each case, exposures were taken in three different wavebands which were associated to a given colour: R-band (centred...
Really hot stars
This unique image shows AB7, one of the highest excitation nebulae in the Magellanic Clouds (MCs), two satellite galaxies of our own Milky Way. AB7 is a binary star, consisting of one WR-star — highly evolved massive star - and a mid-age massive companion of spectral type O. These exceptional...
CONCERTO show starts with new view of the Crab Nebula
This image of the Crab Nebula (also known as Messier 1) in the constellation of Taurus is an overlay of one of the first-light images taken by the CONCERTO instrument on the APEX telescope, operated by ESO, with an image taken by the FORS 2 instrument on ESO’s VLT. CONCERTO’s data is the white...
The Crab Nebula as seen by CONCERTO
This image of the Crab Nebula (also known as Messier 1) in the constellation of Taurus is one of the first-light images taken by the CONCERTO instrument on APEX telescope, operated by ESO. It is the remnant of a supernova explosion at a distance of about 6,000 light-years, observed almost 1,000...
Investigating the Origins of the Crab Nebula With NASA’s Webb
New data revises our view of this unusual supernova explosion.
JADES Transients (NIRCam Image)
This mosaic displays three of about 80 transients, or objects of changing brightness, identified in data from the JADES (JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey) program. Most of the transients are the result of exploding stars or supernovae. By comparing images taken in 2022 and 2023,...
JADES Transients (NIRCam Image)
This mosaic displays three of about 80 transients, or objects of changing brightness, identified in data from the JADES (JWST Advanced Deep Extragalactic Survey) program. Most of the transients are the result of exploding stars or supernovae. By comparing images taken in 2022 and 2023,...
This is all that’s left of a giant star
Around 11 000 years ago a massive star ended its life in a powerful explosion, known as a supernova. During explosions like this, shock waves ripple out through the surrounding gas, compressing it into intricate thread-like structures. The energy that’s released during a supernova then heats...
A transformation in progress
A visually striking collection of interstellar gas and dust is the focus of this week's Hubble Picture of the Week. Named RCW 7, the nebula is located just over 5300 light-years from Earth in the constellation Puppis. Nebulae are areas of space that are rich in the raw material needed to form...
Open Star Cluster [FSR2007] 1410
This is the open star cluster [FSR2007] 1410. An open star cluster is a loosely bound group of a few tens to a few hundred stars. They are found in spiral and irregular galaxies. This object is one of the many cosmic treasures found within the new 1.3 gigapixel Vela Supernova Remnant image,...
Planetary Nebula PNG 262.4-01.9
This is the planetary nebula PNG 262.4-01.9. A planetary nebula is a region of cosmic gas and dust formed from the cast-off outer layers of a dying star. This object is one of the many cosmic treasures found within the new 1.3 gigapixel Vela Supernova Remnant image, captured with the Department...
Globular Star Cluster CI Ferrero 54
This is the globular star cluster CI Ferrero 54. A globular cluster is a spheroidal conglomeration of stars that is bound together by gravity, with a higher concentration of stars towards their centers. This object is one of the many cosmic treasures found within the new 1.3 gigapixel Vela...
Supernova Remnant Puppis A
Puppis A (Pup A) is a supernova remnant about 100 light-years in diameter and roughly 6500–7000 light-years away. This object is one of the many cosmic treasures found within the new 1.3 gigapixel Vela Supernova Remnant image, captured with the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy...
Dark Nebula TGU H1674
This is the dark nebula TGU H1674. Dark nebulae – or absorption nebulae – are clouds of gas and dust that are so dense they obscure and block visible light, making them appear inky black against the starry background. This object is one of the many cosmic treasures found within the new 1.3...
Background Galaxy Found in Image of Vela Supernova Remnant
This image shows a distant, twinkling spiral galaxy — one of the many cosmic treasures found within the new 1.3 gigapixel Vela Supernova Remnant image, captured with the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera, mounted on the US National Science Foundation's Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter...
Cosmic Ripples — image created with FITS Liberator
This image was “liberated” with the FITS Liberator from the FITS file from the Gemini North telescope. It captures the heart of Messier 1, the Crab Nebula. Formed by a colossal supernova explosion in the year 1054, the Crab Nebula consists of the outer layers of a now-dead massive star strewn...
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NASA’s Universe of Learning materials are based upon work supported by NASA under cooperative agreement award number NNX16AC65A to the Space Telescope Science Institute, working in partnership with Caltech/IPAC, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The award is part of NASA’s Science Activation program, which strives to further enable NASA science experts and content into the learning environment more effectively and efficiently with learners of all ages.