Celestial hemisphere:  Northern  ·  Constellation: Taurus (Tau)  ·  Contains:  Crab nebula  ·  M 1  ·  NGC 1952  ·  Sh2-244
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M1 Crab Nebula #6 (Bicolor), Molly Wakeling
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M1 Crab Nebula #6 (Bicolor)

Getting plate-solving status, please wait...
M1 Crab Nebula #6 (Bicolor), Molly Wakeling
Powered byPixInsight

M1 Crab Nebula #6 (Bicolor)

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Description

M1, the Crab Nebula!

This unique and intricate nebula is actually the remnant of a supernova that was observed here on Earth in the year 1054 by Chinese astronomers, as well as possibly Japanese and Middle Eastern astronomers. Its unusual brightness this long beyond the supernova is explained by the pulsar that the exploding star became, a rapidly-spinning neutron star whose relativistic stellar wind energizes the nebula. As a result, the Crab Nebula glows brightly all across the spectrum, from radio waves through high-energy gamma rays.

Number 1 on Messier's list of objects that aren't comets, the Crab Nebula is located in Taurus, and can be seen with any size of telescope under moderately dark skies. It lies about 6,500 lightyears away, and is about 11 lightyears across.

This image is a composite of hydrogen-alpha (Ha), oxygen-III (OIII), and RGB color stars. The Ha data were assigned to the red channel, and OIII to green and blue. This color combination gives the nebula a natural look, since visible hydrogen glows a deep red, and oxygen glows a blue-green. These narrowband channels pierce through the light pollution of the Bay Area much more effectively than my wideband color filters, giving me a lot more detail!

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M1 Crab Nebula #6 (Bicolor), Molly Wakeling

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