SNR 0509-67.5

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Chandra X-ray
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SNR 0509-67.5: A supernova remnant with a light echo in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
(Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/Rutgers/J.Warren, J.Hughes; Optical (Light Echo): NOAO/AURA/NSF/Harvard/A.Rest et al.; Optical (LMC): NOAO/AURA/NSF/S.Points, C.Smith & MCELS team)

Caption: A panoramic view of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) shows the location of the supernova remnant 0509-67.5 and a light echo that was generated when the massive progenitor star exploded. Chandra’s image (upper right) shows the circular shape of the remnant detected in X-ray light. Optical data from ground-based telescopes show this light echo (lower right) traveling through space. This result marks the first time researchers combined two separate methods to estimate the energy of a supernova explosion.

Scale: Chandra inset is 1 arcmin across.

Chandra X-ray Observatory ACIS Image

CXC operated for NASA by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
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