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Astronomy Picture of the Day - Supernova Remnant Pa 30
NASA ^ | 7 Oct, 2026 | International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA. Acknowledgment: PI: T. Cunningham (Center for As

Posted on 10/07/2026 11:09:57 AM PDT by MtnClimber

xplanation: "Happy New Year!" No, wait, this is not a fireworks display. This image shows Nebula Pa 30, observed with the Gemini North Telescope in Hawai'i. It is likely the remnant of an old supernova explosion: separate historical records by Chinese, Japanese and Arabic astronomers tell of a "guest star" that appeared in the sky for 185 days in the year 1181. It is believed that this bright new point of light came from the supernova that caused the fireworks in Pa 30. Astronomers don't know exactly what happened in this unusual explosion, classified as a Type Iax supernova, but it is thought to be caused by the merger of two white dwarfs. The mysterious central star in the image is extremely hot and produces a strong wind, possibly forming the radial filaments. Look closely at them: those pearl-like knots stringing the filaments are 4 light-days in diameter. Understanding how a supernova created this amazing nebula continues an 845-year old mystery (and counting).


TOPICS: Astronomy; Astronomy Picture of the Day; Science
KEYWORDS: apod; nasa

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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.

1 posted on 10/07/2026 11:09:57 AM PDT by MtnClimber
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2 posted on 10/07/2026 11:10:21 AM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: 21stCenturion; 21twelve; 31R1O; 4everontheRight; A Navy Vet; A_perfect_lady; abb; AFB-XYZ; ...
Pinging the APOD list

🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔

3 posted on 10/07/2026 11:11:00 AM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: MtnClimber

One helluva fireworks display!............


4 posted on 10/07/2026 11:11:46 AM PDT by Red Badger (Iryna Zarutska, May 22, 2002 Kyiv, Ukraine – August 22, 2025 Charlotte, North Carolina Say her name)
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To: MtnClimber

PA-30...........

5 posted on 10/07/2026 11:13:09 AM PDT by Red Badger (Iryna Zarutska, May 22, 2002 Kyiv, Ukraine – August 22, 2025 Charlotte, North Carolina Say her name)
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To: MtnClimber

That was a real crowd-pleaser


6 posted on 10/07/2026 11:30:59 AM PDT by doorgunner69
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To: MtnClimber

No way


7 posted on 10/07/2026 11:39:40 AM PDT by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is opinion or satire. Or both.)
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To: MtnClimber

Wow.


8 posted on 10/07/2026 11:55:15 AM PDT by No name given ( Anonymous is who you’ll know me as )
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To: MtnClimber
"those pearl-like knots stringing the filaments are 4 light-days in diameter."

The individual filaments are 4 light days across?

The starburst of filaments is 4 light days across?

The pearl like knots at the center are 4 light days across?

The stars "in" the filaments are really attached to the filaments and not in the distant foreground/background and are 4 light days across?

9 posted on 10/07/2026 12:00:36 PM PDT by null and void (Do we vote for the people who want to hurt us, or vote for the people who don’t want to stop them?)
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To: BenLurkin

Cheese no whey


10 posted on 10/07/2026 12:02:41 PM PDT by null and void (Do we vote for the people who want to hurt us, or vote for the people who don’t want to stop them?)
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To: null and void

I think they are talking about the really small white dots in each of the red filaments. That is just my take. Not the foreground stars or the background stars. That would mean each of the little white specs are larger than our solar system by a factor of four.


11 posted on 10/07/2026 12:07:38 PM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: MtnClimber

The Allium nebula...


12 posted on 10/07/2026 12:17:14 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (TDS -- it's not just for DNC shills and jihadists anymore -- oh, wait, yeah it is.)
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To: MtnClimber

That is so cool. Very pretty!


13 posted on 10/07/2026 12:50:56 PM PDT by telescope115 (Ad Astra, Ad Deum…)
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To: MtnClimber

Super Nova "before" pic
14 posted on 10/07/2026 2:04:55 PM PDT by Texas Eagle (If it wasn't for double-standards, Liberals would have no standards at all. )
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To: MtnClimber
Yikes. I'd hate to see what Uranus looks like if it ever explodes.

In first?

15 posted on 10/07/2026 2:06:54 PM PDT by Texas Eagle (If it wasn't for double-standards, Liberals would have no standards at all. )
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To: MtnClimber

That certainly looks like something exploded.


16 posted on 10/07/2026 4:16:37 PM PDT by Doctor Congo
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To: Doctor Congo

I think it was this telescope:

The International Gemini Observatory consists of twin 8.1-meter diameter optical/infrared telescopes located on two of the best observing sites on the planet. From their locations on Maunakea in Hawai‘i and Cerro Pachón in Chile, Gemini Observatory’s telescopes can collectively access the entire sky.


17 posted on 10/07/2026 4:19:28 PM PDT by Doctor Congo
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To: MtnClimber
That's not a nebula. It's a burr... I had an entire family of them that followed me home just last week. I’m still picking them off my sleeve...


18 posted on 10/07/2026 5:15:53 PM PDT by Deaf and Discerning
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To: MtnClimber

Amazing! makes me think of snow falling on a spider mum or some such flower.

It’s all for God’s glory, whether a person ever sees a thing or not. like all the animals that live in the wild and maybe live there whole life without encountering a human. or all the beautiful things in nature, in middle of forest or desert or jungle that maybe no person has ever seen. They are there a certain amount of time, all just because God wants them to be. He sees them :)


19 posted on 10/07/2026 5:31:40 PM PDT by b4me (Pray, and let God change you. He knows better than you or anyone else, who He made you to be.)
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To: MtnClimber

Looks like a corona-nova. grin. That is a beautiful picture - wow!


20 posted on 10/08/2026 7:25:31 AM PDT by week 71
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