National Aeronautics and Space Administration

N132D

The Chandra X-ray image of N132D shows a highly structured remnant, or shell, of 10 million degree gas that is 80 light years across. It is located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, about 180,000 light years from Earth. The estimated age of the remnant is about 3000 years. The N132D supernova remnant appears to be colliding with a giant molecular cloud, which produces the brightening on the southern rim of the remnant. The relatively weak X-radiation on the upper left shows that the shock wave is expanding into a less dense region on the edge of the molecular cloud. A number of small circular structures are visible in the central regions and a hint of a large circular loop can be seen in the upper part of the remnant. Chandra X-ray Observatory

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