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Chandra X-ray Image of SNR 0548-70.4
A new study of images from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory on supernova remnants - the debris from exploded stars - shows that the symmetry of the remnants, or lack thereof, reveals how the star exploded. This is an important discovery because it shows that the remnants retain information about how the star exploded even though hundreds or thousands of years have passed. Out of the 17 supernova remnants sampled, ten were independently classified as the core-collapse variety, while the remaining seven of them were classified as Type Ia. One of these, a remnant known as SNR 0548-70.4, was a bit of an "oddball". This one was considered a Type Ia based on its chemical abundances, but has the asymmetry of a core-collapse remnant.
(Credit: NASA/CXC/UCSC/L. Lopez et al.)
A new study of images from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory on supernova remnants - the debris from exploded stars - shows that the symmetry of the remnants, or lack thereof, reveals how the star exploded. This is an important discovery because it shows that the remnants retain information about how the star exploded even though hundreds or thousands of years have passed. Out of the 17 supernova remnants sampled, ten were independently classified as the core-collapse variety, while the remaining seven of them were classified as Type Ia. One of these, a remnant known as SNR 0548-70.4, was a bit of an "oddball". This one was considered a Type Ia based on its chemical abundances, but has the asymmetry of a core-collapse remnant.
(Credit: NASA/CXC/UCSC/L. Lopez et al.)
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Chandra X-ray Images of G292 and Kepler's Supernova Remnant
A new study of images from Chandra shows that the symmetry of the supernova remnants, or lack thereof, reveals how the star exploded. G292.0+1.8 represents a type of supernova where a massive star collapses on itself. The shape of this type of remnant is relatively asymmetric. The Kepler supernova remnant is from a family of supernovas produced by a thermonuclear explosion on a white dwarf. Kepler and other remnants like it are more symmetrical in shape than G292 and its brethren.
(Credit: NASA/CXC/UCSC/L. Lopez et al.)
A new study of images from Chandra shows that the symmetry of the supernova remnants, or lack thereof, reveals how the star exploded. G292.0+1.8 represents a type of supernova where a massive star collapses on itself. The shape of this type of remnant is relatively asymmetric. The Kepler supernova remnant is from a family of supernovas produced by a thermonuclear explosion on a white dwarf. Kepler and other remnants like it are more symmetrical in shape than G292 and its brethren.
(Credit: NASA/CXC/UCSC/L. Lopez et al.)
Return to G292.0+1.8 & Kepler's Supernova Remnant (December 17, 2009)
Revised: November 30, 2022