For almost 900 years, the massive space explosion that caused this weed to bloom was a mystery.
Now, a cutting edge telescope is providing our best look yet at the results.
After six months, it was gone, but not forgotten.
In this artist’s conception of Pa 30 Nebula, the odd filaments can be seen shooting away from its core.© W.M. Keck Observatory/Adam Makarenko
But not all nebulas are alike.
Some are composed of the remnants of stars, which die in massive explosions.
Thats what happened in Pa 30 Nebulas case, and some of the results are unique among known nebulae.
For reference, our Sun has a surface temperature of about 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit (5,500 Celsius).
This means that the material has not been slowed down nor sped up since the explosion.
Cunningham and his colleagues wanted to get a better idea of the shape of those filaments.
Different colors move with different amounts of energy.
For instance, blue has relatively high energy levels compared to red.
The result was a 3D map of the nebulas filaments.
The shape is asymmetrical, which hints that the original explosion was also asymmetrical.
The question that remains is why this nebula took on this shape.
Even after almost a millennium, some mysteries continue to persist.
News from the future, delivered to your present.
The Star Set to Explode Totally Flaked.
A Partial Solar Eclipse Will Create Devil Horns on Saturday.
