Supernova Shock Wave Paints Cosmic Portrait

Running Time: 30 seconds

A zoom into the southern constellation Vela to reveal the magnificent remnants of the Pencil Nebula. Zoom continues to Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys image of a small portion of the Pencil Nebula's wispy filamentary structures. The nebula's shape suggests that it is part of the supernova shock wave that recently encountered a region of dense gas. The Vela supernova remnant is 114 light-years across. The remnant is about 815 light-years away from our solar system.

Video Credit: NASA, A. Fujii, D. Malin (DMI), The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA) and L. Barranger (STScI)