Mumbai, April 11:  A recent image taken by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope demonstrates that the magnitude of a star explosion remnant is equal to that of the star itself. Cassiopeia A (Cas A), the magnificent remnant of a star that exploded around 340 years ago, was recently seen in breathtaking detail by the telescope.

The American space agency shared the astonishing pic via its official Twitter handle along with caption, “On the left (in orange) is where ejected material from the star is ramming into surrounding gas and dust. Within that outer shell is material from the star itself. The green loop on the center right is a mystery to scientists with its unexpected shape and complexity.” NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope Takes Stunning Image of Uranus; Shows Dramatic Rings, Bright Features in Planet’s Atmosphere. 

The description further read, as the youngest known remnant from an exploded, massive star in our galaxy, Cas A offers unique clues into a star’s death. By studying Cas A, Webb astronomers may also learn more about the origins and production of cosmic dust — which forms the elements we’re made of! Cas A has been widely studied, including by ChandraXRay, NASAHubble, and more, it added.

NASA's James Webb Captures Cassiopeia A

According to NASA’s official website, Cas A is the youngest known remnant from an exploding, massive star in our galaxy, which makes it a unique opportunity to learn more about how such supernovae occur.

Danny Milisavljevic of Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, principal investigator of the Webb program that captured these observations, told, “Cas A represents our best opportunity to look at the debris field of an exploded star and run a kind of stellar autopsy to understand what type of star was there beforehand and how that star exploded.” Earth-Like Exoplanet Discovered by NASA James Webb Telescope for First Time. 

A co-investigator on the program further added that compared to previous infrared images, the organisation now see incredible details owing to the telescope that it wasn’t able to access before.

 

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 11, 2023 05:55 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).