Astronomers Capture Cosmic Hand Hitting a Wall

Astronomers have measured motions within a remarkable cosmic structure for the first time using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. The data show a blast wave and debris from an exploded star moving away from the explosion site and colliding with a wall of surrounding gas. Researchers estimate that light from this explosion, or supernova, reached Earth about 1,700 years ago when the Mayan empire was flourishing and the Jin dynasty ruled China. However, by cosmic standards the supernova remnant formed by the explosion, which occurred when a massive star ran out of fuel and collapsed, is one of the youngest in the Milky Way galaxy. The explosion also created an ultra-dense, magnetized star called a pulsar, which then blew a bubble of energetic particles. Scientists call this structure a nebula and Chandra reveals that is emitting X-rays. Since the explosion, the supernova remnant — m