Crab Nebula, NGC 1952, M1
The Crab Nebula (NGC 1952, M1) is the result of a violent explosion within the Milky Way caused by the spectacular death of a star some 1600 light-years away. The unstoppable collapse of the Crab's progenitor star led to the formation of a rapidly rotating neutron star named the Crab Pulsar, which lurks at the heart of the nebula. This object is roughly the same size as Mars' small moon Phobos, but contains almost one and a half times the mass of the Sun, and whirls around thirty times every second. This causes jets of high-energy radiation to periodically sweep in the direction of Earth, like the spinning beams of a lighthouse, causing the Crab Nebula to appear to pulse at specific wavelengths. Unlike more commonly seen views of this remnant, this image uses just a single filter, giving rise to a smoother and far simpler view of the famous nebula.
Size: 6127px × 3979px
Photo credit: © Photo Researchers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1, 1952, astronomical, astronomy, body, celestial, cloud, cosmic, crab, deep, formation, heavenly, interstellar, m1, messier, nebula, nebulae, neutron, ngc, ngc1952, nursery, object, pulsar, region, remnant, science, sky, snr, space, star, star-forming, stellar, supernova, taurus, wind
