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Collection:
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NASA Spitzer Space Telescope Collection
Collection
NASA Spitzer Space Telescope Collection
Collection
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Title:
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Cassiopeia A: Death Becomes Her
Title
Cassiopeia A: Death Becomes Her
Title
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Description:
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This stunning false-color picture shows off the many sides of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A. It is made up of images taken by three of NASA's Great Observatories, using three different wavebands of light. Infrared data from the Spitzer Space Telescope are colored red; visible data from the Hubble Space Telescope are yellow; and X-ray data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory are green and blue.
Located 10,000 light-years away in the northern constellation Cassiopeia, Cassiopeia A is the remnant of a once massive star that died in a violent supernova explosion 325 years ago. It consists of a dead star, called a neutron star, and a surrounding shell of material that was blasted off as the star died. This remnant marks the most recent supernova in our Milky Way galaxy, and is one of the most studied objects in the sky.
Each Great Observatory highlights different characteristics of this celestial orb. While Spitzer reveals warm dust in the outer shell about a few hundred degrees Kelvin (80 degrees Fahrenheit) in temperature, Hubble sees the delicate filamentary structures of hot gases about 10,000 degrees Kelvin (18,000 degrees Fahrenheit). Chandra probes unimaginably hot gases, up to about 10 million degrees Kelvin (18 million degrees Fahrenheit). These extremely hot gases were created when ejected material from Cassiopeia A smashed into surrounding gas and dust. Chandra can also see Cassiopeia A's neutron star (turquoise dot at center of shell).
Blue Chandra data were acquired using broadband X-rays (low to high energies); green Chandra data correspond to intermediate energy X-rays; yellow Hubble data were taken using a 900 nanometer-wavelength filter, and red Spitzer data are from the telescope's 24-micron detector.
Description
This stunning false-color picture shows off the many sides of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A. It is made up of images taken by three of NASA's Great Observatories, using three different wavebands of light. Infrared data from the Spitzer Space Telescope are colored red; visible data from the Hubble Space Telescope are yellow; and X-ray data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory are green and blue.
Located 10,000 light-years away in the northern constellation Cassiopeia, Cassiopeia A is the remnant of a once massive star that died in a violent supernova explosion 325 years ago. It consists of a dead star, called a neutron star, and a surrounding shell of material that was blasted off as the star died. This remnant marks the most recent supernova in our Milky Way galaxy, and is one of the most studied objects in the sky.
Each Great Observatory highlights different characteristics of this celestial orb. While Spitzer reveals warm dust in the outer shell about a few hundred degrees Kelvin (80 degrees Fahrenheit) in temperature, Hubble sees the delicate filamentary structures of hot gases about 10,000 degrees Kelvin (18,000 degrees Fahrenheit). Chandra probes unimaginably hot gases, up to about 10 million degrees Kelvin (18 million degrees Fahrenheit). These extremely hot gases were created when ejected material from Cassiopeia A smashed into surrounding gas and dust. Chandra can also see Cassiopeia A's neutron star (turquoise dot at center of shell).
Blue Chandra data were acquired using broadband X-rays (low to high energies); green Chandra data correspond to intermediate energy X-rays; yellow Hubble data were taken using a 900 nanometer-wavelength filter, and red Spitzer data are from the telescope's 24-micron detector.
Description
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Release Date:
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2005/06/09
Release_Date
2005/06/09
Release Date
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Press Release:
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Press_Release
Press Release
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Release Credit:
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NASA/JPL-Caltech/O. Krause (Steward Observatory)
Release_Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech/O. Krause (Steward Observatory)
Release Credit
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Image Credit:
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NASA / JPL-Caltech / O. Krause (Steward Observatory)
Image_Credit
NASA / JPL-Caltech / O. Krause (Steward Observatory)
Image Credit
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Object name:
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Cassiopeia A
Object_name
Cassiopeia A
Object name
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Object type:
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Supernova Remnant
Object_type
Supernova Remnant
Object type
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Position (J2000):
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*RA: *23h23m24.00s *Dec: *58d48m0.00s
Position_(J2000)
*RA: *23h23m24.00s *Dec: *58d48m0.00s
Position (J2000)
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Distance:
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11,000 light-years
Distance
11,000 light-years
Distance
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Constellation:
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Cassiopeia
Constellation
Cassiopeia
Constellation
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Wavelength:
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24 microns
Wavelength
24 microns
Wavelength
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Image scale:
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55x12 arcmin
Image_scale
55x12 arcmin
Image scale
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Observers:
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Oliver Krause (Steward Observatory)
George H. Rieke (Steward Observatory)
Stephan M. Birkmann (Max-Planck-Institut fur Astronomie)
Emeric Le Floc'h (Steward Observatory)
Karl D. Gordon (Steward Observatory)
Eiichi Egami (Steward Observatory)
John Bieging (Steward Observatory)
John P. Hughes (Rutgers University)
Erick Young (Steward Observatory)
Joannah L. Hinz (Steward Observatory)
Sascha P. Quanz (Max-Planck-Institut fur Astronomie)
Dean C. Hines (Space Science Institute)
Observers
Oliver Krause (Steward Observatory)
George H. Rieke (Steward Observatory)
Stephan M. Birkmann (Max-Planck-Institut fur Astronomie)
Emeric Le Floc'h (Steward Observatory)
Karl D. Gordon (Steward Observatory)
Eiichi Egami (Steward Observatory)
John Bieging (Steward Observatory)
John P. Hughes (Rutgers University)
Erick Young (Steward Observatory)
Joannah L. Hinz (Steward Observatory)
Sascha P. Quanz (Max-Planck-Institut fur Astronomie)
Dean C. Hines (Space Science Institute)
Observers
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Instrument:
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MIPS
Instrument
MIPS
Instrument
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Exposure Date:
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20 November 2003 & 2 December 2004
Exposure_Date
20 November 2003 & 2 December 2004
Exposure Date
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Exposure Time:
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80 sec per sky position
Exposure_Time
80 sec per sky position
Exposure Time
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Orientation:
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North is 86 deg CCW from up
Orientation
North is 86 deg CCW from up
Orientation
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Related links:
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Related_links
Related links
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facet_what:
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Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
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facet_what:
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MIPS
facet_what
MIPS
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Planck
facet_what
Planck
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Cassiopeia
facet_what
Cassiopeia
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Hubble Space Telescope (HST)
facet_what
Hubble Space Telescope (HST)
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Chandra X-Ray Observatory (CXO)
facet_what
Chandra X-Ray Observatory (CXO)
facet_what
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facet_where:
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Milky Way Galaxy
facet_where
Milky Way Galaxy
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Washington, D.C.
facet_where
Washington, D.C.
facet_where
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facet_when:
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December 2004
facet_when
December 2004
facet_when
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facet_when:
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20 November 2003
facet_when
20 November 2003
facet_when
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facet_when_year:
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2003
facet_when_year
2003
facet_when_year
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facet_when_year:
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2004
facet_when_year
2004
facet_when_year
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Image #:
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ssc2005-14c
Image_#
ssc2005-14c
Image #
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original url:
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original_url
original url
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UID:
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SPD-SPITZ-ssc2005-14 c
UID
SPD-SPITZ-ssc2005-14 c
UID
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