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N132D:
Glowing Remnant from a Star-Shattering Explosion
This "true color" Chandra image of N132D shows the
beautiful, complex remnant of an explosion of a massive
star in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a nearby galaxy
about 160,000 light years from Earth. The colors
represent different ranges of X-rays, with red, green,
and blue representing, low, medium, and higher X-ray
energies respectively.
Supernova remnants comprise debris of a stellar
explosion and any matter in the vicinity that is
affected by the expanding debris. In the case of N132D,
the horseshoe shape of the remnant is thought to be due
to shock waves from the collision of the supernova
ejecta with cool giant gas clouds. As the shock waves
move through the gas they heat it to millions of
degrees, producing the glowing X-ray shell.
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Fast Facts for
N132D:
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Credit
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NASA/SAO/CXC
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Scale
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Image is 100 arcsec on a side.
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Category
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Supernovas & Supernova Remnants
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Coordinates
(J2000)
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RA 5h 25m 2s | Dec -69º 38' 59"
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Constellation
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Dorado
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Observation
Date
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July 20, 2000
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Observation
Time
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20.2 hours
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Obs.
ID
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1828
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Color
Code
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The colors represent different ranges
of X-rays, with red, green, and blue
representing, low, medium, and higher
X-ray energies respectively.
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Instrument
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ACIS
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Distance
Estimate
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160,000 light years (distance to LMC)
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Also Known
As
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SNR 0525-69.6
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Release Date
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May 22, 2002
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