Arcs Tell The Tale Of A Giant Eruption

Chandra_132_1024

chandra_132 August 7th, 2002

Credit: X-ray (NASA/CXC/M. Karovska et a

Chandra's image of this nearby active galaxy revealed two large arcs of multimillion degree Celsius gas in the outskirts of the galaxy. A composite image of the X-ray (blue), the radio (pink and green), and the optical (orange and yellow) presents a stunning tableau of a galaxy in turmoil. The arcs of hot, X-ray emitting gas appear to be part of a projected ring 25,000 light years in diameter. The size and location of the ring indicate that it may have been produced in a titanic explosion that occurred in the nucleus of the galaxy about ten million years ago.

Provider: Chandra X-ray Observatory

Image Source: http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2002/0157/

Curator: Chandra X-ray Observatory, Cambridge, MA, USA

Image Use Policy: http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/image_use.html

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Image Details Image Details

Image Type
Collage
Object Name
Centaurus A Arcs
Subject - Local Universe
Galaxy > Activity > AGN
Galaxy > Component > Central Black Hole

Distance Details Distance

Universescale2
11,000,000 light years

Position Details Position Details

Position (ICRS)
RA = 13h 25m 27.8s
DEC = -43° 1’ 21.0”
Constellation
Centaurus

Color Mapping Details Color Mapping

  Telescope Spectral Band Wavelength
Blue Chandra (HRC-I) X-ray (X-ray) 826.7 pm
Yellow Orange DSS (UKST) Optical (B-band) 395.0 nm
Green NRAO (VLA) Radio (L-band) 200.0 mm
Pink NRAO Radio -
Spectrum_xray2w
Blue
Yellow Orange
Green
Chandra_132_1280
×
ID
132
Subject Category
C.5.3.2   C.5.4.6  
Subject Name
Centaurus A Arcs
Credits
X-ray (NASA/CXC/M. Karovska et a
Release Date
2002-08-07
Lightyears
11,000,000
Redshift
11,000,000
Reference Url
http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2002/0157/
Type
Collage
Image Quality
Good
Distance Notes
Facility
Chandra, DSS, NRAO, NRAO
Instrument
HRC-I, UKST, VLA, -
Color Assignment
Blue, Yellow-Orange, Green, Pink
Band
X-ray, Optical, Radio, Radio
Bandpass
X-ray, B-band, L-band, -
Central Wavelength
0.8267, 395, 20e7, -
Start Time
1999-09-10T07:49:44, 1975-03-11T16:25, 1993-05-23, -
Integration Time
19660, 5400, -, -
Dataset ID
463, -, -, -
Notes
Coordinate Frame
ICRS
Equinox
J2000
Reference Value
201.3656251, -43.0224887
Reference Dimension
Reference Pixel
Scale
Rotation
Coordinate System Projection:
TAN
Quality
Position
FITS Header
Notes
WCS retrieved using CXCs PinpointWCS
Creator (Curator)
Chandra X-ray Observatory
URL
http://chandra.harvard.edu
Name
Chandra X-ray Observatory Center
Email
cxcpub@cfa.harvard.edu
Telephone
617.496.7941
Address
60 Garden St.
City
Cambridge
State/Province
MA
Postal Code
02138
Country
USA
Rights
http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/image_use.html
Publisher
Chandra X-Ray Center
Publisher ID
chandra
Resource ID
0157_composite.tif
Resource URL
http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2002/0157/0157_composite.tif
Related Resources
Metadata Date
2012-08-13T16:37:17-04:00
Metadata Version
1.2
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Detailed color mapping information coming soon...

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Universescalefull
11,000,000 light years

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