The Crab Nebula
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A Crab Nebula collaboration. Click for larger. Image Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/F.Seward; Optical: NASA/ESA/ASU/J.Hester & A.Loll; Infrared: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. Minn./R.Gehrz
Before I get going to far: The shuttle Atlantis has departed from the ISS and will be heading home to a landing on Friday. The shuttle program is going to end pretty soon and you won’t have many more chances to see the pair crossing the sky. To find out when you can see them, check Heavens Above or Spaceweather.com. Be sure to enter your location!!!
Ok back to the Crab Nebula, have a look at this great new image release of the Crab Nebula from the Chandra site, in particular the central regions.
Check out the Crab Nebula Fact Sheet from Chandra
From the Chandra website:
A star’s spectacular death in the constellation Taurus was observed on Earth as the supernova of 1054 A.D. Now, almost a thousand years later, a super dense object — called a neutron star — left behind by the explosion is seen spewing out a blizzard of high-energy particles into the expanding debris field known as the Crab Nebula. X-ray data from Chandra provide significant clues to the workings of this mighty cosmic “generator,” which is producing energy at the rate of 100,000 suns.
This composite image uses data from three of NASA’s Great Observatories. The Chandra X-ray image is shown in blue, the Hubble Space Telescope optical image is in red and yellow, and the Spitzer Space Telescope’s infrared image is in purple. The X-ray image is smaller than the others because extremely energetic electrons emitting X-rays radiate away their energy more quickly than the lower-energy electrons emitting optical and infrared light. Along with many other telescopes, Chandra has repeatedly observed the Crab Nebula over the course of the mission’s lifetime. The Crab Nebula is one of the most studied objects in the sky, truly making it a cosmic icon.
Spectacular image. It really looks like a generator in there. But don’t we hate to see the end of the shuttle program? I thought it was doing so well making one delivery after another.
I have a question. I know the hubble takes pictures and then there is cassini. Is cassini a satalite like the hubble and if so how many hubble type cameras are there.
Thanks
Trudy
I agree with you F Eddie, too bad the Shuttle Program couldn’t either be continued or replaced with a better system. I am not pleased with the design of the new program, looks like a throwback to the 60′s, a proven design for sure and improved, but I was hoping for something that would look more like the shuttle only improved, perhaps a transfer vehicle between Earth and the moon. Maybe have a lander in orbit at the moon, an idea for a simple system. Plus, forget about landing on Mars for a century or so, learn to live on the Moon for a while. It’s going to be tough at first, so better to be able to get help in a few days, not a possible 2 years on Mars. Oh, the Crab Nebula, simply beautiful.
its amazing to see its the power and beauty