A supernova such as the one that resulted in supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A) is the explosive demise of a massive star that collapses under the weight of its own gravity. The collapsed star then blows its outer layers into space in an explosion that can briefly outshine its entire parent galaxy. Cas A is relatively young, estimated to be only about 340 years old. Hubble has observed it on several occasions to look for changes in the rapidly expanding filaments.
A new image taken with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope provides a detailed look at the tattered remains of a supernova explosion known as Cassiopeia A (Cas A). It is the youngest known remnant from a supernova explosion in the Milky Way. The new Hubble image shows the complex and intricate structure of the star's shattered fragments. The image is a composite made from 18 separate images taken in December 2004 using Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS).
Object Name: Cassipopeia A
Image Type: Astronomical
Object Description: Supernova Remnant
Position (J2000): R.A. 23h 23m 24s
Dec. +58° 48' 54"
Constellation: Cassiopeia
Distance: About 10,000 light-years 3,100 parsecs away.
Dimensions: This image is 8.5 arcminutes (25 light-years or 7.7 parsecs) wide. The bright remnant shell has a diameter of about 4 parsecs (13 light-years).
About the Data
Data Description: This image was created from HST data from the following proposals: 9890 and 10286, both by: R. Fesen (Dartmouth College), J. Morse (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center), J. Raymond (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics), R. Chevalier (University of Virginia), and M. Dopita (Australian National University).
Instrument: ACS/WFC
Exposure Date(s): March, 2004 and December, 2004
Exposure Time: 2.3 days
Filters: F625W (SDSS r), F775W (SDSS i) , and F850LP (SDSS z)
Release Date: August 29, 2006
Colors This image is a composite of many separate exposures made by the ACS instrument on the Hubble Space Telescope using several different filters. Three filters were used to sample broad wavelength ranges. The color results from assigning different hues (colors) to each monochromatic image. In this case, the assigned colors are:
F625W blue
F775W green
F850LP red
Credit: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration