Chandra Release - September 25, 2008

Visual Description: SN 1996cr

This is an X-ray and optical composite image of a supernova (called SN 1996cr) and the spiral galaxy called Circinus. The image is dominated by blue, red and purple colors with spots of white. The structure of the object is a spiral for the galaxy, with a bright white center.  The supernova appears as a large blue-white splotch toward the lower right of the galaxy.  Data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory is shown in the blue colors and data from the Hubble Space telescope is shown in the yellow, red, and cyan colors. The supernova was first singled out in 2001 as a bright, variable object in a Chandra image. Despite some exceptional properties, its nature remained unclear until years later, when scientists were able to confirm this object was indeed a supernova – over a decade after it initially exploded.