Tuesday, March 27, 2012

APOD 3.7

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This image depicts an intriguing astronomical mystery. In 1987 the brightest supernova in recent history was seen in the Large Magellanic Cloud; the remnants of the supernova explosion can be seen in the object in the center of the image. The real focus of this image, however, is the set of rings which seem to surround the center. Although the cause of the rings remains uncertain, ideas range from beamed jets emanating from a left-over neutron star, to  interaction between the wind from the progenitor star and the gas released before the explosion.

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