Today's NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day features the Vela Supernova Remnant — a vast tangle of glowing filaments left by a star that exploded 12,000 years ago, just 800 light-years from Earth. At its heart, a pulsar spins ten times per second.
What happens after a star explodes? A huge fireball of hot gas shoots out in all directions. When this gas slams into the existing interstellar medium, it heats up so much it glows. Two different supernova remnants (SNRs) are visible in the featured image,... Continue Reading →
That gold on your ring finger is stellar -- and not just in a complimentary way. In a finding that may overthrow our understanding of where Earth's heavy elements such as gold and platinum come from, new research by a... Continue Reading →
Scents of Science 