Astronomy Picture of the Day - M1: The Incredible Expanding Crab

NASA ^ | 15 Nov, 2023 | Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Jeff Hester (ASU), Allison Loll (ASU), Tea Temim (Princeton Uni

[MtnClimber]

Explanation: Cataloged as M1, the Crab Nebula is the first on Charles Messier's famous list of things which are not comets. In fact, the Crab Nebula is now known to be a supernova remnant, an expanding cloud of debris from the death explosion of a massive star. The violent birth of the Crab was witnessed by astronomers in the year 1054. Roughly 10 light-years across, the nebula is still expanding at a rate of about 1,500 kilometers per second. You can see the expansion by comparing these sharp images from the Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space Telescope. The Crab's dynamic, fragmented filaments were captured in visible light by Hubble in 2005 and Webb in infrared light in 2023. This cosmic crustacean lies about 6,500 light-years away in the constellation Taurus.

[MtnClimber]

To be added or removed from the Astronomy Picture of the Day ping list please send me a request via "Private Reply" (Mail).

For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.

[MtnClimber]

[MtnClimber]

Pinging the APOD list.

🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔

[MtnClimber]

Yes, APOD posted M1 six days ago. This is a different photo. Why post it so soon again? I do not know.

[cephalopod]

As to why, I don’t know. Maybe there are fewer interesting (i.e Messier) objects in the fall sky and this one is one of the best.
However if you go to the APOD link there are 2 views of it in different light, just move your cursor on and off the image. You can see some expansion of the nebula even over a short period of time. It’s changing faster than most things we see in the night sky. It also shows off the differences in what we can see via the Webb vs. Hubble telescopes.

[bimboeruption]

Simply beautiful. The colors take my breath away.

[doorgunner69]

Glad I was not in the region when it blew up.

[telescope115]

It would be cool to see a supernova. We may have a chance to see one next year. A star in the constellation Corona Borealis ,called T CrB is suspected of being a “recurring” nova. It has a track record of getting super bright every 80 years, and its next chance is expected to be next year. Here’s some info: https://www.livescience.com/space/astronomy/evidence-of-mysterious-recurring-nova-that-could-reappear-in-2024-found-in-medieval-manuscript-from-1217 https://skyandtelescope.org/observing/whats-up-with-t-crb04202016/

[telescope115]

It would be cool to see a supernova. We may have a chance to see one next year. A star in the constellation Corona Borealis ,called T CrB is suspected of being a “recurring” nova. It has a track record of getting super bright every 80 years, and its next chance is expected to be next year. Here’s some info: https://www.livescience.com/space/astronomy/evidence-of-mysterious-recurring-nova-that-could-reappear-in-2024-found-in-medieval-manuscript-from-1217 https://skyandtelescope.org/observing/whats-up-with-t-crb04202016/

[telescope115]

Whoops 🙄

[dragnet2]

The violent birth of the Crab was witnessed by astronomers in the year 1054. Roughly 10 light-years across, the nebula is still expanding at a rate of about 1,500 kilometers per second.2023-1054

A thousand years ago this star detonates, a cataclysmic event, and the debris field is still expanding at 1,000 miles per second. Sure puts things in perspective. M1, the explosion that keeps giving.

[MtnClimber]

Thanks for the info. Will have to watch for it.

[2nd Amendment]

Crabs are no joke. It can be painful near them