NGC 6960 Veil Nebula
The Veil Nebula (NGC6960) is part of a supernova remnant known as the Cygnus Loop. It is the shattered remains of one, and possibly two, supernovae that exploded more than 15,000 years ago at a distance of 2,500 light-years from Earth in the direction of the constellation of Cygnus, the Swan. At the time of the explosion, it would have been seen as a very bright star, rivaling the crescent Moon. The bright star near the center of the image, known as 52 Cygnus, is not associated with the supernova.
| Observatory: | WIYN Observatory Kitt Peak, Arizona |
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| Telescope: | WIYN 0.9-Meter |
| Instrument: | Mosaic I |
| Astronomer: | T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage) |
| Date of Observation: | 09-14-2000 |
| Filters and Assigned Colors: | Hydrogen-alpha (green), Oxygen [OIII] (blue) and Sulfur [SII] (red) |
| Exposure Times: | 5x10 minutes in each filter |
| Location of Image: | Cygnus |
| Field of View: | 57.3 x 50.8 arcmin |
| Orientation: | North is left, east is down |
| Link to Larger Image | |
| Link to Full Resolution Image | |
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