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Multiwavelength View of Supernova 1987A

Multiwavelength View of Supernova 1987A

Astronomers combined observations from three different observatories to produce this colorful, multiwavelength image of the intricate remains of Supernova 1987A. The red color shows newly formed dust in the center of the supernova remnant, taken at submillimeter wavelengths by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) telescope in Chile. The green and blue hues reveal where the expanding shock wave from the exploded star is colliding with a ring of material around the supernova. The green represents the glow of visible light, captured by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. The blue color reveals the hottest gas and is based on data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. The ring was initially made to glow by the flash of light from the original explosion. Over subsequent years the ring material has brightened considerably as the explosion’s shock wave slams in it. Supernova 1987A resides 163,000 light-years away in the Large Magellanic Cloud, where a firestorm of star birth is taking place. The ALMA, Hubble, and Chandra images at the bottom of the graphic were used to make up the multiwavelength view.

Image: NASA, ESA, and A. Angelich (NRAO/AUI/NSF)
Hubble data: NASA, ESA, and R. Kirshner (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation)
Chandra data: NASA/CXC/Penn State/K. Frank et al.
ALMA data: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO) and R. Indebetouw (NRAO/AUI/NSF)

About the Object

  • R.A. Position
    R.A. PositionRight ascension – analogous to longitude – is one component of an object's position.
    05h 35m 28.03s
  • Dec. Position
    Dec. PositionDeclination – analogous to latitude – is one component of an object's position.
    -69° 16' 11".8
  • Constellation
    ConstellationOne of 88 recognized regions of the celestial sphere in which the object appears.
    Dorado
  • Distance
    DistanceThe physical distance from Earth to the astronomical object. Distances within our solar system are usually measured in Astronomical Units (AU). Distances between stars are usually measured in light-years. Interstellar distances can also be measured in parsecs.
    Approximately 163,000 light-years (50 kiloparsecs) away
  • Object Name
    Object NameA name or catalog number that astronomers use to identify an astronomical object.
    SN 1987A
  • Object Description
    Object DescriptionThe type of astronomical object.
    Supernova Remnant
  • Release Date
    February 24, 2017
  • Science Release
    The Dawn of a New Era for Supernova 1987A
  • Credit
    NASA, ESA, A. Angelich (NRAO, AUI, NSF), Robert Kirshner (CfA, Moore Foundation), Kari Frank (PSU), R. Indebetouw (NRAO, AUI, NSF)

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Details

Last Updated
Mar 28, 2025
Contact
Media

Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov