Veil Nebula

supernova remnant · the Cygnus Loop

2,400 light-years from Earth

The expanding wreckage of a star that exploded 10,000 to 20,000 years ago. The blast wave is still ploughing into surrounding gas, lighting it up in long twisted filaments.

• 2,400 light-years · about 110 light-years across
• the shock is still racing outward at ~1.5 million km/h

kind

nebula · explosion or collision

catalogue

NGC 6960 · NGC 6992 · NGC 6995 · NGC 6974 · NGC 6979 · IC 1340