Supernova
Crab Nebula (M1)
The remnant and pulsar of the supernova of 1054
The remnant of the supernova that Chinese astronomers saw even in daylight in 1054. At its centre the Crab Pulsar, spinning 30 times a second, powers the nebula with synchrotron radiation; it is still expanding at 1,500 km/s. The first object in the Messier catalogue.
| Type | Supernova |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Taurus |
| Distance | 2,000 pc (6,500 light-years) |
| Apparent magnitude | 8,4 |
| Explosion | 4 July 1054 |
| Pulsar period | 33.5 ms |
| Expansion speed | ~1,500 km/s |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 5h 34m 31.9s |
| Declination (J2000) | +22° 00′ 52″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 68° S. North of latitude 68° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in December, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 6,523 years ago. At that time the first farming villages were being founded; there was no writing yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 116 million years.