The Clearest View Yet Of A 1,000 Year Old Explosion

Annalee Newitz — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:00:00 PST

In 1054, humans recorded sightings of the mega-star explosion that created the Crab Nebula. It was so bright it was visible to the naked eye. Now three space telescopes have together created a more complete picture of the debris.

According to National Geographic:

This new picture of the Crab Nebula combines data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Spitzer Space Telescope . . . Infrared light caught by Spitzer and visible light seen by Hubble paint the nebula's expanding debris cloud in shades of purple and red. Meanwhile, Chandra's x-ray vision is helping astronomers understand the high-energy particles (seen in blue) coming from the dead star's core, known as a [sic] white dwarf.

I just love that weird tendril of x-rays shooting out of the pulsar. It seems to be emerging from a giant maw in space (which - isn't there a Doctor Who story called Maw In Space? Maybe I'm just on crack).

via National Geographic

Gamma Rays of the Dead Shine Like a Nightmare into the Eyes of the Living

Annalee Newitz — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 16:30:52 PDT

When you look into the heart of the Crab Nebula, you are staring at the gamma-radiation-soaked nightmare of history. You may have already known that this gorgeous nebula is the result of a supernova that Chinese and Arab astronomers recorded back in 1054. But what you didn't know is that the dead star became a pulsar that's still pouring ultrahot, oscillating gamma radiation out into the cosmos. Researchers in the U.K. are investigating this gamma-spewing pulsar, and Clara Moskowitz has the story at Space.com. Image credit: NASA/ESA and Jeff Hester (Arizona State University).

io9: crab nebula

The Clearest View Yet Of A 1,000 Year Old Explosion

Gamma Rays of the Dead Shine Like a Nightmare into the Eyes of the Living