Uncovering the Veil Nebula
This image shows a beautiful portion of the Veil Nebula - the shattered remains of a supernova that exploded some 5-10,000 years ago. The intertwined rope-like filaments of gas result from the enormous amounts of energy released as the fast-moving debris from the explosion ploughs into its surroundings and creates shock fronts.
The image displays two characteristic features: sharp filaments and diffuse emission. These correspond to two different viewing geometries: sharp filaments correspond to an edge-on view of a shock front, and diffuse emission corresponds to a face-on view of it.
This image is a small portion of the Veil located in the western part of the Veil (to the left in the overview image). The entire structure spans about 3 degrees, corresponding to about 6 full moons.
The image was taken with the Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) on board the Hubble Space Telescope. The colour is produced by composite of three different images. The different colours indicate emission from different kinds of atoms excited by the shock: blue shows oxygen, green shows sulphur, and red shows hydrogen.
Credit:NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration. Acknowledgment: J. Hester (Arizona State University)
About the Image
Id: | heic0712c |
Type: | Observation |
Release date: | 31 July 2007, 15:00 |
Related releases: | heic0712 |
Size: | 1494 x 753 px |
About the Object
Name: | Cygnus Loop, NGC 6960, Veil Nebula |
Type: | Milky Way : Nebula : Type : Supernova Remnant |
Distance: | 1500 light years |
Constellation: | Cygnus |
Category: | Nebulae |
Wallpapers
Coordinates
Position (RA): | 20 56 18.14 |
Position (Dec): | 30° 21' 55.07" |
Field of view: | 2.48 x 1.25 arcminutes |
Orientation: | North is 22.3° right of vertical |
Colours & filters
Band | Wavelength | Telescope |
---|---|---|
Optical Oiii | 502 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFPC2 |
Optical Sii | 673 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFPC2 |
Optical H-alpha | 656 nm |
Hubble Space Telescope
WFPC2 |