Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/U.Texas/S.Post et al, Infrared: 2MASS/UMass/IPAC-Caltech/NASA/NSF

This debris field, which glows brightly in X-rays, was left over when a star exploded about 4,500 years ago. This object, known as G299.2-2.9, belongs to a particular class of supernovas called Type Ia. Astronomers think that a Type Ia supernova involves a thermonuclear explosion - involving the fusion of elements and release of vast amounts of energy - of a white dwarf star in a tight orbit with a companion star. In the Chandra image, red, green, and blue represent low, medium, and high-energy X-rays, respectively, detected by the telescope. The X-rays have been combined with optical and infrared data, which show the stars in the Chandra field of view.

Provider: Chandra X-ray Observatory

Image Source: http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2015/g299/

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

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