Amazing Universe

  • Released Tuesday, July 8, 2014
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Some of the most powerful and menacing spectacles happen in the blackest regions of space. To observe these displays, NASA has a fleet of space telescopes that peer deep into the cosmos. One such telescope is the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The spacecraft detects X-rays emitted from exploded stars, distant galaxies, and hot matter flowing into gigantic black holes. The telescope is so powerful it can read a stop sign from 12 miles away. Some of the X-ray light it has seen dates back to 12 billion years ago, shortly after the formation of the universe. Explore the images for a look at five far-off places revealed with the help of Chandra.

Check out striking images of the cosmos captured from space.

Check out striking images of the cosmos captured from space.

The Flame Nebula’s central cluster of stars would have remained invisible without X-ray observations by Chandra.

The Flame Nebula’s central cluster of stars would have remained invisible without X-ray observations by Chandra.

In the Sagittarius arm of the Milky Way, Chandra spotted X-rays (blue) emitted by newborn stars.

In the Sagittarius arm of the Milky Way, Chandra spotted X-rays (blue) emitted by newborn stars.

In the Whirlpool Galaxy, about 30 million light-years from Earth, Chandra spied material falling into multiple black holes.

In the Whirlpool Galaxy, about 30 million light-years from Earth, Chandra spied material falling into multiple black holes.

Stellar winds and supernova explosions produce superheated X-ray gas (blue) that Chandra can detect, seen here in the Tarantula Nebula.

Stellar winds and supernova explosions produce superheated X-ray gas (blue) that Chandra can detect, seen here in the Tarantula Nebula.

A supermassive black hole devours gas from its host galaxy, releasing X-rays (red) seen by Chandra.

A supermassive black hole devours gas from its host galaxy, releasing X-rays (red) seen by Chandra.

Credits

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Cover image courtesy of NASA/CXC/SAO/J.DePasquale and NASA/JPL-Caltech and NASA/STScI
Flame Nebula image courtesy of NASA/DSS
Whirlpool Galaxy image courtesy of NASA/CXC/Wesleyan Univ./R.Kilgard, et al. and NASA/STScI
Tarantula Nebula image courtesy of NASA/CXC/PSU/L.Townsley et al. and NASA/JPL/PSU/L.Townsley et al.
Milky Way image courtesy of NASA/CXC/Penn State/L.Townsley et al. and ESO/2.2m telescope
Black hole image courtesy of NASA/CXC/MIT/C.Canizares, D.Evans et al. and NASA/STScI and NSF/NRAO/VLA

This page was originally published on Tuesday, July 8, 2014.
This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:50 PM EDT.