Journey to Exploding Star: Supernova 1987A in Dorado | ESO/Hubble

Journey to Exploding Star: Supernova 1987A in Dorado | ESO/Hubble

This video zooms into images of Supernova 1987A (SN 1987A), located 168,000 light-years away in the neighboring Large Magellanic Cloud dwarf galaxy, as seen with European Southern Observatory telescopes, and finally fades into an artist’s impression that shows the distinct elements present in SN 1987A: two outer rings, one inner ring and the deformed, innermost expelled material.

Almost four decades ago, astronomers spotted one of the brightest exploding stars in more than 400 years. Since that first sighting, the doomed star, called Supernova 1987A, has continued to fascinate astronomers with its spectacular light show. The NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope is one of many observatories that has been monitoring the blast's aftermath.

SN 1987A has been a target of intense observations at wavelengths ranging from gamma rays to radio since its discovery in February 1987. 

The most prominent feature in the close-up of the Hubble image is a ring with dozens of bright spots. A shock wave of material unleashed by the stellar blast is slamming into regions along the ring's inner regions, heating them up, and causing them to glow. The ring, about a light-year across, was probably shed by the star about 20,000 years before it exploded.

Astronomers detected the first bright spot in 1997, but now they see dozens of spots around the ring. In the next few years, the entire ring will be ablaze as it absorbs the full force of the crash. The glowing ring is expected to become bright enough to illuminate the star's surroundings, providing astronomers with new information on how the star expelled material before the explosion.

The pink object in the center of the ring is debris from the supernova blast. The glowing debris is being heated by radioactive elements, principally titanium 44, created in the explosion. The debris will continue to glow for many decades.

The origin of a pair of faint outer red rings, located above and below the doomed star, is a mystery. The two bright objects that look like car headlights are a pair of stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud.

The Hubble image was taken in December 2006 with its Advanced Camera for Surveys.

Credit: European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Duration: 1 minute

Release Date: Aug. 4, 2010

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