Veil Nebula: Wisps of an Ancient Supernova

Veil Nebula: Wisps of an Ancient Supernova

Image Credit & Copyright:
Abdullah Alharbi

Explanation:
Wisps like this are all that remain visible of a Milky Way star.

About 7,000 years ago that star exploded in a
supernova, leaving the
Veil Nebula.

At the time, the expanding cloud was likely as bright as a crescent
Moon, remaining visible
for weeks to people living at the
dawn of recorded history.

Today, the resulting
supernova remnant,
also known as the
Cygnus Loop, has faded and is
now visible only through a small
telescope directed toward the
constellation
of the Swan
(Cygnus).

The remaining Veil Nebula is physically huge, however,
and even though it lies about 1,400
light-years distant, it covers over five times the size of the
full Moon.

The
featured picture was taken in
Kuwait
in mid-2024 and features light emitted by
hydrogen in red and oxygen in blue.

In deep images of the
complete Veil Nebula like this, even
studious readers might not be able to identify the
iconic filaments.