Image information:
2006: This reprocessed image was produced with a RCOS half-meter telescope using a SBIG STL-11000 camera. See the original here
2025: This image was produced with a Takahashi Mewlon 180c and ZWO ASI2600MC AIR one shot color camera. See the original here
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19 years in the making
M1, better known as the Crab Nebula, was initially mistaken as Halley’s Comet by the famous comet hunter Charles Messier. However, once he realized this error, Messier was inspired to create his famous catalog of objects, of which this is the first, to prevent similar mis-identifications in the future.
Located about 6,500 light years in the distance, the Crab Nebula is the remnant of a massive star that exploded in 1054. Witnessed and documented by Chinese astronomers, the star was observed to be four times brighter than Venus and visible in the daytime sky for 23 days after it was first noticed.
As of today, the nebula has grown to a diameter of about 10 light-years and is continuing to inflate at a rate of over 600 miles/second (1,500 km/s).
Because of the enormous distances that separate Earth from most celestial objects outside our solar system, changes to their nature can be only rarely spotted during human lifetimes. However, the Crab Nebula’s relative proximity to our planet and its incredible expansion rate are apparent by these images which span 19 years, from 2006 until 2025.
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Click here for a larger image!
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