A Story Of Star Death: Cassiopeia A
Tracing the tattered remains of an exploded star.
Supernova explosions are some of the most destructive events to take place in the cosmos. In one type of supernova, a massive star blows itself apart, sending shockwaves out in all directions, along with an expanding shell of hot gas. Supernovas are one of the ways galaxies become seeded with many elements, such as carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, silicon and iron, that are necessary for planets and life.
Supernovas like the one that created Cassiopeia A (Cas A) are also factories of cosmic dust. Cosmic dust is made up of tiny grains that, with the help of gas, provide the building blocks of planets: dust clumps become pebbles, pebbles become larger rocks, and larger rocks can become planets.
Observations made across different wavelengths of light have allowed researchers to explore what kind of dust is produced in a supernova explosion, how it is formed, and how much dust survives the hostile trip into interstellar space. Cas A is one of the most well-studied objects in modern astronomy, and offers researchers a unique opportunity to explore how these particular objects evolve over time.
Quick Facts: Cassiopeia A
Also known as:
Cas A
Type of object:
Supernova remnant
Distance from Earth:
approximately 11,000 light-years
Size:
about 10 light-years across
Location in the sky:
Cassiopeia Constellation
Location in the universe:
Milky Way Galaxy, outside the Solar System
Did you know:
The supernova was not observed on Earth. This fact gives us clues about the condition of the progenitor star right before it exploded — it may have produced lots of dust.
Credits: Cassiopeia A
Radio image from the Very Large Array: L. Rudnick, T. Delaney, J. Keohane & B. Koralesky, image composite by T. Rector
Mid-infrared light image from the James Webb Space Telescope: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, D. Milisavljevic (Purdue University), T. Temim (Princeton University), I. De Looze (University of Gent)
Near-infrared light image from the James Webb Space Telescope: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, D. Milisavljevic (Purdue University), T. Temim (Princeton University), I. De Looze (Univeristy of Gent)
Visible and near-infrared light image from the Hubble Space Telescope: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration
X-ray image from Chandra X-Ray Observatory: NASA, CXC, SAO
Subject-matter expertise provided by Dr. Rutuparna Das of Harvard University’s Center for Astrophysics
Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach