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Credit & Copyright: NASA/CXC/M. Weiss
Explanation:
The bright source near the center is a neutron star,
the incredibly dense, collapsed remains of a massive stellar core.
Surrounding it is
supernova remnant
Cassiopeia A (Cas A), a
comfortable
11,000 light-years away.
Light from the
Cas A supernova,
the death explosion of a massive star,
first reached Earth about 350 years ago.
The expanding debris cloud spans about 15 light-years in this composite
X-ray/optical image.
Still hot enough to emit X-rays, Cas A's
neutron star is cooling.
In fact, years of observations with the orbiting
Chandra X-ray Observatory find that
the
neutron star is cooling rapidly --
so rapidly that researchers suspect a large part of the
neutron star's core is forming a frictionless
neutron superfluid.
The Chandra results represent the first observational evidence for this
bizarre state of neutron matter.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: supernova remnant - Cas A - neutron star
Publications with words: supernova remnant - Cas A - neutron star
See also:
- APOD: 2024 September 18 Á The Mermaid Nebula Supernova Remnant
- APOD: 2024 April 16 Á Filaments of the Vela Supernova Remnant
- APOD: 2024 April 3 Á Unusual Nebula Pa 30
- APOD: 2024 March 25 Á Sonified: The Jellyfish Nebula Supernova Remnant
- APOD: 2024 February 27 Á Supernova Remnant Simeis 147
- The Pencil Nebula Supernova Shock Wave
- APOD: 2023 December 26 Á IC 443: The Jellyfish Nebula