Crab Nebula
Like few other celestial objects, the Crab nebula displays the death of a star in all of its beauty. Both colorful and convoluted filaments of gas expand violently away from the origin of the explosion. The cataclysmic end for this star was observed in 1054 AD by any of humanity that cared to look skyward- it could be seen even during the day for months! In the heart of the nebula lies the dense collapsed remnant of the star- a pulsar. Weighing in at the mass of the sun- but only six miles across- this ball of condensed matter spins 30 times a second and releases tremendous amounts of energy. At a distance of 7000 light years this explosion went off safely so that now we can observe this 10 light year cloud of glowing gas (I often describe this as "star guts" to the public.)Of the two stars in the very center of the nebula, the one on the bottom is the pulsar.
This image was taken as part of Advanced Observing Program (AOP) program at Kitt Peak Visitor Center during 2014.
Credit:KPNO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/Yoshikawa Yoshihiko/Blythe Guvenen
About the Image
| Id: | noao-m1guvenen3 |
| Type: | Observation |
| Release date: | June 26, 2014, 8:43 a.m. |
| Size: | 1536 x 1024 px |
About the Object
| Name: | Crab Nebula |
| Constellation: | Taurus |
| Category: | Nebulae |
Wallpapers
Coordinates
| Position (RA): | 5 35 20.51 |
| Position (Dec): | 21° 59' 43.23" |
| Field of view: | 23.18 x 15.37 arcminutes |
| Orientation: | North is 178.0° right of vertical |
Colors & filters
| Band | Wave-length | Tele-scope |
|---|---|---|
| Optical B | 438 nm | Visitor Center 0.5-meter Telescope Other CCD |
| Optical G | 475 nm | Visitor Center 0.5-meter Telescope Other CCD |
| Optical H-alpha | 656 nm | Visitor Center 0.5-meter Telescope Other CCD |
| Optical Broad Band | 555 nm | Visitor Center 0.5-meter Telescope Other CCD |