NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has captured an image of a cosmic explosion that is quite similar to fireworks on Earth. In the nearby galaxy, the Small Magellanic Cloud, a massive star has exploded as a supernova, and begun to dissipate its interior into a spectacular display of colorful filaments. The greenish-blue supernova remnant, E0102, resides 50 light-years away from the edge of a bright glowing massive star-forming region.

Credit: NASA, ESA, and the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)

Acknowledgment: J. Green (University of Colorado, Boulder)

• Hubble Heritage Release of E0102