Astronomy Picture of the Day

                         Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! [1] Each day a different image or photograph of our
 fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a
                           professional astronomer.

                              2018 September 30
                                      [2]
           The Lonely Neutron Star in Supernova Remnant E0102-72.3
  Credit: X-ray (NASA [3] / CXC [4] / ESO [5] / F. Vogt et al. [6] ); Optical
          (ESO [7] / VLT [8] / MUSE [9]  & NASA [10] / STScI [11] )

Explanation: Why is this neutron star off-center? Recently a lone neutron star
has been found within the debris [12] left over from an old supernova
explosion [13] . The "lonely neutron star" in question is the blue dot at the
center of the red nebula near the bottom left of E0102-72.3 [14] . In the
featured image composite [15] , blue represents X-ray light captured by NASA's
Chandra Observatory [16] , while red and green represent optical light
captured by ESO [17] 's Very Large Telescope [18]  in Chile [19]  and NASA's
Hubble Space Telescope [20]  in orbit. The displaced position of this neutron
star [21] is unexpected since the dense star is thought to be the core of the
star that exploded in the supernova and created the outer nebula [22] . It
could be that the neutron star in E0102 [23]  was pushed away from the
nebula's center by the supernova itself, but then it seems odd that the
smaller red ring remains centered on the neutron star [24] . Alternatively,
the outer nebula [25] could have been expelled during a different scenario --
perhaps even involving another star [26] . Future observations of the nebulas
and neutron star [27]  appear likely to resolve the situation.

                        Tomorrow's picture: NASA's 60th

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    Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff [39] (MTU [40] ) & Jerry Bonnell [41]
                                  (UMCP [42] )
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              A service of: ASD [45]  at NASA [46]  / GSFC [47]
                           & Michigan Tech. U. [48]
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Site notes:
  [1] archivepix.html
  [2] image/1809/E0102NS_HubbleChandra_3985.jpg
  [3] https://www.nasa.gov/
  [4] http://chandra.harvard.edu/
  [5] https://www.eso.org/
  [6] https://arxiv.org/abs/1803.01006
  [7] https://www.eso.org/
  [8] https://www.eso.org/public/usa/teles-instr/pa...
  [9] https://www.eso.org/sci/facilities/develop/in...
  [10] https://www.nasa.gov/
  [11] http://www.stsci.edu/
  [12] https://arxiv.org/abs/1803.01006
  [13] https://www.spacetelescope.org/videos/heic051...
  [14] ap090905.html
  [15] http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2018/e0102/
  [16] http://chandra.harvard.edu/about/
  [17] https://www.eso.org/public/about-eso/
  [18] ap000707.html
  [19] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chile
  [20] https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/sto...
  [21] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutron_star
  [22] ap000414.html
  [23] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzF1zQ-4vwo
  [24] ap170501.html
  [25] ap991209.html
  [26] ap991219.html
  [27] http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2018/e0102/e...
  [28] ap180929.html
  [29] archivepix.html
  [30] lib/apsubmit2015.html
  [31] lib/aptree.html
  [32] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apo...
  [33] calendar/allyears.html
  [34] /apod.rss
  [35] lib/edlinks.html
  [36] lib/about_apod.html
  [37] http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?dat...
  [38] ap181001.html
  [39] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  [40] http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  [41] https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnel...
  [42] http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  [43] lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  [44] https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Priv...
  [45] https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  [46] https://www.nasa.gov/
  [47] https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  [48] http://www.mtu.edu/

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